Poetry (by Moore) Resources

A biography of Moore from the Poetry Foundation, plus links to some of her poetry.

Former United States Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky discusses Moore's revisions of "Poetry." This page also includes an audio recording of Pinsky reading the poem.

The Norton Anthology's resource page for Moore's poem features commentary by the anthology editors, an image of the poem's first publication, and a scanned page from Moore's college biology notebook, which includes her drawing of a jellyfish.

This site contains key excerpts from several poets' and literary critics' interpretations of "Poetry."

Poet Donald Hall interviews Moore about her writing process and what she believes to be "the art of poetry." The entire transcript of their conversation can be read here, and it reveals both Moore's dedication to her craft and her ironic wit.

A PBS documentary on the poet, offering both historical and biographical contextualization for her work. While the documentary doesn't discuss "Poetry" specifically, it does offer clips of televised interviews with Moore and readings of her other well-known poems, such as "The Fish" and "The Steeple-Jack."

A photograph of Moore wearing her signature tricorn hat and cape.

Again in her tricorn hat, Moore holds up a baseball – and the crowd goes wild!

Poems is the first book-length publication of Marianne Moore's work and includes the original version of "Poetry." This collection is especially noteworthy in that the poet H.D. published the book without Moore's knowledge or consent!

This volume contains the 29-line version of Poetry, which many critics consider the best. This is the same version printed in the current Norton anthologies. T.S. Eliot edited this volume for Faber and Faber and included a fascinating introduction outlining why Moore matters for modern poetry. Think of it as Eliot's version of "Why Should I Care?"

Complete Poems prints the final, three-line version of "Poetry," with the 29-line version included in the endnotes. The current Penguin Books edition reproduces the original 1967 edition.

Published in 1981, Bonnie Costello's extensive examination of Moore's poetry is still considered to be the definitive scholarly text on the writer.