At this point Hollander's parade of obscure poets remains interesting, but his analysis of their work is becoming far too populated with name dropping. I understand that it's a good shorthand for whatever characterizes the work of the people referred to, and that it's kind of a secret code to be understood by those who are "learned," but it's not the most welcoming way to write of something.
Of course, such name dropping in a book of poetry theory/criticism is, at the same time, a monument to the place that poetry has in society. That people do it so easily as Hollander makes it clear that there is a healthy body of poets and poetry to be discussed, and that, as with any body, its parts are interconnected. It's something that has yet to be really seen in criticism of other media, like, oh, say, video games.
What I wonder though is whether webs of association will be built up between video games or video games will be accepted as a society-wide legitimate medium first.
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