Poetry 101: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Poem

• Intro / Thesis
• begin by introducing "Introduction to Poetry" by Billy Collins.
• present my claim:
• My claim is as follows: Even though this poem could be interpreted as Collins lamenting the relentless scrutiny of literary critics, there is more evidence, both within and out of the text, to suggest that the "they" referred to in "Introduction to Poetry" are actually students of Collins, not his critics."
• I think this is a unique take on this poem and one that can be argued for and against because of the ambiguous nature of the poem.

• Section One
• Explain the other interpretations that the poem could possibly have regarding who Collins is referring to.
• critics
• other poets
• readers in general. 

• Section Two
• Return to my thesis
• Explain that through historical context and clues in the text, it is apparent that Collins was writing about how he attempts to teach poetry to students, only to have them juice meaning out of it. 
• Reference Collin's relatively "unknown-ness" at the time he wrote it

• The fact that he was a professor of English when he wrote it

 

• The language used in the poem screams student, and not critic.

• Section Three
• my so what of my argument.
• I will argue that when we understand that Collins is writing about his attempts to teach poetry, we see that he is trying to tell us that poetry is art, not science.
• Science is always tested, studied, and dissected mercilessly until we reach a solution to an equation. 
• Collins demonstrates the unnecessary "torture" that some students put poetry through so they can find meaning and with this poem.
• Collins shows that most of the time, poetry is just another art form to be enjoyed, not something you have to autopsy to find an answer.