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WebLinks: Contexts for Exploring Visual and Verbal Texts |
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Chapter 3 - Picturing Ourselves |
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"Embrace" makes frequent references to the second person&mdash:"you." Who is this you? Is it the reader? An imaginary interlocutor? A foil for Billy Collins? How many different perspectives are described or implied here? Read through the following links about Billy Collins and see how your initial response to the poem changes.
http://usinfo.org/mgck/usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/writers/collins.htm
Billy Collins was the Poet Laureate of the U.S. from 2001-2003. At the link above, you can read about what makes American poetry particularly American, at least according to Collins. Collins' essay reflects his accessible style and keen sense of humor—not qualities always associated with poet laureates. The site is run by the U.S. State Department, which asked a number of well-known writers to reflect on the particularities of American writing.
http://www.npr.org/programs/wesun/features/2002/reading/
This is a link to a National Public Radio program featuring the summer reading lists of famous people—from chefs to politicians to poets—describing what they're reading now. Scroll down to the entry on Billy Collins and you can hear an interview with him talking about his favorite books and why he reads what he reads. He has some interesting insights on plagiarism!
http://www.bigsnap.com/billy.html
This is a major Billy Collins site featuring links to some of the poet's media appearances, a bibliography, a biography, and even some Billy Collins gossip (yes, not even poets are immune to the culture of gossip). Collins' poetic voice is often very conversational and easy to follow without the printed text. On this site, you can hear the poet reading from his own work; it will give you a feel for Collins' wry sense of humor.
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