Eating Poetry ~ Mark Strand

The poem "Eating Poetry" by Mark Strand is a poem that contains an extended shift in the form of a librarian. The poem consists of six stanzas that are each three lines. The first stanza is about eating poetry in the literal sense of eating the written word. The second stanza is about the librarians reaction to the speaker eating poetry. The third stanza is about the result of the speakers having eaten all the poetry. It also introduces dogs into the poem. The fourth stanza is about the dogs, and the librarians reaction to them. The fifth stanza is about the librarian, and her reaction to the speaker behaving as a dog. The sixth and final stanza shows the speaker as a complete dog. This poem by Mark Strand sis about extended metaphor and a prolonged shift in the form of a librarian.