Okay. You remember that I've mentioned that it's important to read the {{U}}(36) {{/U}}poems aloud, so you can develop an appreciation of the sounds of the poetry: the rhymes, the {{U}}(37) {{/U}} , the repetition of words or sounds, and to get a sense of the interplay between the sounds of the words and their meaning.
This is really {{U}}(38) {{/U}} as we move into modem poetry, especially by writers who place so much importance on sounds that the meaning becomes all letter-relevant. Like this line by Gertrude Stein that I'd like to {{U}}(39) {{/U}}. Listen as I say the words. "Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose." {{U}}(40) {{/U}} literally, this would seem to be an empty statement, one which gives us no information. But the purpose of a poem need not be to inform the reader of anything, but rather to evoke feelings. To create a sensual as well as phonically {{U}}(41) {{/U}} experience. Now Gertrude Stein was better known for her prose than for her poems. But I'd like to quote this line, because of its musicality, and because I think it helps open up our {{U}}(42) {{/U}} to the unconventional style of {{U}}(43) {{/U}} poets. You'll see this in your homework tonight as you read the poetry of John Ashbery, {{U}}(44) {{/U}}, which I recommend you do. Poets like Ashbery don't rely so much on any formal rhyme scheme or meter as on the musical quality of the individual words themselves. As I said, {{U}}(45) {{/U}}. And now I'd like to touch briefly on her essay entitled "Conversation and Explanation". {{U}}(46) {{/U}}.