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The Beginnings of Poetry — Francis Barton Gummere

The Beginnings of Poetry

Francis Barton Gummere

  • Essays
  • Book language: English
  • 514 pages

The Beginnings of Poetry is a collection of essays by Francis Barton Gummere, published in 1901, about how poetry emerged as a social institution. Rather than tracing rhythms or national literatures in detail, it explores the communal and cultural roots of poetic expression. It is worth listening to for its broad and thoughtful discussion of poetry's place in early societies.

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Cover of the original edition (Project Gutenberg, public domain).

Text source: gutenberg.org · The work is in the public domain.

Contents

  1. THE BEGINNINGS OF POETRY
  2. PREFACE
  3. CONTENTS
  4. CHAPTER I PURPOSE AND METHOD
  5. CHAPTER II RHYTHM AS THE ESSENTIAL FACT OF POETRY
  6. CHAPTER III THE TWO ELEMENTS IN POETRY
  7. CHAPTER IV THE DIFFERENCING ELEMENTS OF THE POETRY OF ART
  8. CHAPTER V THE DIFFERENCING ELEMENTS OF COMMUNAL POETRY
  9. CHAPTER VI SCIENCE AND COMMUNAL POETRY
  10. CHAPTER VII THE EARLIEST DIFFERENTIATIONS OF POETRY
  11. CHAPTER VIII THE TRIUMPH OF THE ARTIST
  12. INDEX
  13. FOOTNOTES
  14. THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG™ LICENSE

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