Just thought a lighter thread would go down well,will do a thread later on literature so keep this strictly for poetry.

My all time favourite poet just happens to be an American,an American from the 19th century,a time when the American Civil War was in full flight,a time when President Lincoln was in power and sadly assasinated for his beliefs.

Walt Whitman is my favourite,why,well he was the Father of free verse,I like free verse,I like the way it flows,or how it manages to appeal to you without rhyme or metre,although i love any good poetry Whitman in my opinion took poetry to a new level,a level that the common man could understand without the need for a degree from a university.

I have never understood the need for the average man on the street to have to dissect a poem to really understand its meaning,there is such a thing as literary criticism that asks the reader to "criticise" the form and structure of a poem,never been a big fan,found it very pretentious,poetry should make you understand where the writer was coming from,not through criticism but through the content,a good poet/poem makes you feel instantly at ease,the reader should not have to worry wether the writer really meant to say/mean this or that,a good poem needs neither to be criticised or pulled apart to be enjoyed.

A good book to read and is quite expensive but you can get from the library is The Norton Anthology Of Poetry,its a brilliant book that explains poetry to the average man.

I like all Whitmans poems,the lot,he only has one book of poetry and it is "Leaves Of Grass",first published in 1855,and comprised 12 poems,and he added to it all his life.He was born in the year 1819 and died in 1892.

billy