James Fenton: Poetry

James Fenton is poet. Explore interesting quotes on poetry.
James Fenton: 34   quotes 2   likes

“Among those today who believe that modern poetry must do without rhyme or metre, there is an assumption that the alternative to free verse is a crash course in villanelles, sestinas and other such fixed forms. But most…are rare in English poetry. Few poets have written a villanelle worth reading, or indeed regret not having done so.”

James Fenton

Source: An Introduction to English Poetry (2002), Ch. 3: The Training of the Poet (p. 21)

Reading

“Poetry is not a metrical exercise.”

James Fenton

An Introduction to English Poetry, Viking Penguin, London 2002 ISBN 0141004398

Exercises

“Poetry carries its history within it, and it is oral in its origins, its transmission was oral.”

James Fenton

An Introduction to English Poetry, Viking Penguin, London 2002 ISBN 0141004398

History