Poetic Schools and Movements

the academy of american poets has an excellent overview of 31 poetic schools and movements, which is an incredible resource for seeing how poetic styles and philosophies, over the centuries—sometimes organically and sometimes by design—have concentrated into movements.

you can check it out here:

http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/193

you should be able to take the names of the various schools and poets listed as examples, and then use google to find more information on each. i would caution against finding your "style" in any of the schools listed. most contemporary poets straddle multiple schools, or exist outside of them all. schools and movements often only become such after the fact, as a means of making sense of certain trends.

the greatest value of this list is the ability to cobble together the evolution of poetry; for instance, the rise of metaphysical poetry as a rebellion against the conventions of elizabethan formalism, or the appeal of the beats to a disillusioned post world war 2 generation.

its greatest value lies as a starting point to embark on your own voyage of discovery.

-william

bump for those who might have missed this...