Imagery In Mark Strand's Eating Poetry

In the poem, Eating Poetry by Mark Strand, the speaker uses imagery and a free verse poetry form throughout the plot of the text. In the beginning of the poem, the speaker begins their story by announcing to the reader that they have been eating poetry as ink runs from their mouth. As the plot culminates, the reader learns that as the speaker continues to viciously gorge himself on the poetry, the poems continue to further reduce him to his truest state of being: a savage. Throughout the text, the speaker’s use of imagery and the form of the poem help to better convey and delineate the sanguine, anomalous tone of the poem. In Mark Strand’s work, Eating Poetry, the free verse form of the poem helps to better project the tone of the text to the reader. In the text the speaker says, “Ink runs from the corners of my mouth/ There is no happiness like mine/I have been eating poetry,” (1-3). From this quote, the reader can recognize that the free verse form of writing helps to create an air of peculiarity in the poem. Later, the text goes on to say, “She does not understand/ When I get on my knees and lick her hand, /she screams.” (13-15). From this quote, the reader can see that the lack of pattern and structure …show more content…
In the poem, the speaker says, “Ink runs from the corners of my mouth/ There is no happiness like mine/I have been eating poetry,” (1-3). Because of the speakers use of strikingly animated words and phrases, the as the reader interprets the poem they can clearly see the speaker in their described position of joy. The speaker goes on to say, “I am a new man/ I snarl at her and bark/ I romp with joy in the bookish dark,” (16-18). The speaker’s use of wording in this quote caters to readers’ sight and hearing senses and allows the reader to better envision the speaker as they cavort in happiness because of their newly found savage