The End of the Poem

By Paul Muldoon,

Book cover of The End of the Poem

Book description

The End of the Poem contains the fifteen lectures delivered by Paul Muldoon as Oxford Professor of Poetry, from 1999 to 2004. Rather than individual and discrete performances, these lectures form a dazzling set of variations around the sustained theme of 'the end of the poem'. Each lecture explores a…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Why read it?

1 author picked The End of the Poem as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Each chapter is a deep exploration of a single poem, highlighting sounds and words in ways the poems’ authors may or may not have intended. When I met this book, I had been writing poetry for years—unfocused drafts distilled from raw experience and emotion that I later revised into purposeful communication.

Then I read The End of the Poem. Suddenly, I wanted my poems filled with riddles and echoes, delicate Easter eggs for my readers. This book taught me there is an uncontrollable synergy between writers, words, and readers. Each reader will encounter a writer’s intentional (and unintentional) choices…

Want books like The End of the Poem?

Our community of 11,000+ authors has personally recommended 83 books like The End of the Poem.

Browse books like The End of the Poem

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Easter, Oxford, and the Odyssey?

Easter 15 books
Oxford 26 books
The Odyssey 40 books