The Poet

Tom Wayman, in his poem "The Poet," brings the poet to life, line by line, through a silly, yet serious tone, by creating a catalog poem with repetition. Wayman lists the characteristics of a poet with short, simple sentences to keep it fun, while giving off an impression of a poet to the reader. For example, he explains that the poet “Does not understand what he reads” and “Does not understand what he hears.” While this is slightly humorous, as it is meant to be impossible for the reader to comprehend, it does actually represent the fact that the poet has trouble comprehending what he/she hears, due to the over-analyzation. The fact that Wayman begins his lines with repeating words, such as “cannot,” “does not,” “may,” and “has difficulty” is what makes this poem a catalog poem. This gives the reader a full description of the poet, so they are left with no unanswered questions, just a desire to read into the picture Wayman has presented them with. Through these short, descriptive statements that make up a catalog poem, Tom Wayman brings the poet to life for his readers to understand.