It comes in the second to last chapter, but Hollander finally makes his stance on the difference between poets and versifiers clear. He closes his chapter on May Swenson's poetry with the statement: "the body of a poet's work continues always to grow as we understand it more and more" (298). In other words, the difference is that poets write things that can be mined for meaning (almost) endlessly. Whereas, those who only write verse, write things that sparkle for their rhyme or composition, but that lack depth.
The glimpse of May Swenson's poetry that Hollander provides is intriguing. Not because it's intricate in its form or detailed in its imagery, but because it's so personal in its make up. In this way, it's kind of like the poetry/verse that I've written.
In fact, Swenson and I have a similar philosophy when it comes to writing poetry, Hollander quotes her as saying of her process that she lets "each poem 'make itself'" (292). This free-wheeling quality might be part of what leads Hollander to call her as American as apple pie, but it's simply refreshing to read of a poet who doesn't stress over every line and every word, every meter and every rhyme. It's enough to make an unverified versifier gather up poems and publish a collection.
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