In this quote, Peter Davison is describing the essence of poetry. He recommends that poetry is not practically words on a page, however rather it is a kind of expression that is meant to be spoken and heard. The act of composing poetry resembles producing a melody for the breath, as if the words are meant to be sung or spoken in a rhythmic way. This highlights the significance of the oral tradition in poetry, where the words are suggested to be shared and experienced through the breath. It also highlights the power of poetry to stimulate emotions and get in touch with others on a much deeper level. Overall, this quote catches the essence of poetry as a type of artistic expression that is indicated to be experienced through the breath.
"We don't attempt to have any theme for a number of the anthology, or to have any particular sequence. We just put in things that we like, and then we try to alternate the prose and the poetry"
"Concrete poets continue to turn out beautiful things, but to me they're more visual than oral, and they almost really belong on the wall rather than in a book. I haven't the least idea of where poetry is going"
"I think Ginsberg has done more harm to the craft that I honor and live by than anybody else by reducing it to a kind of mean that enables the most dubious practitioners to claim they are poets because they think, If the kind of thing Ginsberg does is poetry, I can do that"
