Poetry Anthologies

Poetry anthologies combine the work of one or several poets and bind them together as one book. Anthologies are used in educational courses to provide students with an array of work to study in one class. Also, anthologies like those of Edgar Allen Poe and Walt Whitman bring together the life work of a poet and create a collection for readers. Poetry anthologies are offered by many large publishers and can typically be found for under $40, depending on the size, author, and publisher.

The history of poetry is a long one. According to some, poetry predates all other written forms of communication. Especially in pre-literate societies like those in Africa, poetry was used as an oral tradition among tribes who wanted to pass down stories and knowledge.

Written Poetry
Of course, poetry is also written. Heavy use of lyrical qualities, similes, metaphors, couplets, and metered verse are typical of most poetry. Authors like Rudyard Kipling, e.e. cummings, T.S. Eliot, and others are famous for their distinct literary styles, but all fit under the category of "poets." Shakespeare's work sounds nothing like Poe's, but they are linked by the romantic, metered quality of their work.

Poets like Aristotle and Homer as well as revolutionary 20th century poets like Sistah Souljah use rhetorical devices to express their poems. More modern work, though, pushes the boundaries of traditional poetry and challenges the reader to follow a more asymmetric pattern of expression. Modern poets often use catachresis, or a paradoxical shift of the meaning of a word or words, to convey their points in a surrealist way.