The Complete Guide to the Anthology

Sixteen poems, one argument — the whole anthology, told properly.

Introduction

How to own sixteen poems — Why the anthology is easier than it looks — and where the real difficulty hides
The map — all sixteen, in one guided tour — Grouped by the conversation they belong to, not by the year they were written

The first conversation — what a parent hands a child — If—, Do not go gentle, Poem at Thirty-Nine, Piano
The second conversation — a child's clock and an adult's — Half-past Two, Hide and Seek, Piano, Poem at Thirty-Nine
The third conversation — how to face the ending — Do not go gentle, Remember, La Belle Dame, War Photographer
The fourth conversation — whose English is this? — Half-caste, Search For My Tongue, Blessing
The fifth conversation — who speaks, who is spoken for, and who is watching — My Last Duchess, Prayer Before Birth, War Photographer, Hide and Seek
The sixth conversation — beautiful and terrible at once — The Tyger, La Belle Dame sans Merci, Blessing, War Photographer

Sixteen forms, and why each poet chose one — The anthology as a museum of English verse

Choosing the second poem in ninety seconds — The decision that decides the essay
Structuring a comparison that compares — Why the shape of the essay is itself an assessment objective
The matrix in action — five pairings, five arguments — Turning a table of partners into essays with a spine
Model comparative paragraphs, taken apart — What top-band writing actually looks like, sentence by sentence

The examination — forty minutes, thirty marks — What to do, minute by minute, and what earns nothing