Hill is the author of a poetry collection, has published widely in literary journals, and is an editor for a university publications department. In the following essay, Hill examines Rogers's method of using lists to enrich both the language and meaning of her work, as evidenced in this poem.
The simplest, most efficient way to saturate a poem with crisp, vivid imagery is to fill it with lists of concrete objects, aptly modified, of course, with good adjectives. Pattiann Rogers is a master of this technique, and she explains why it appeals to her in a 2002 interview with staff writer Alice R. O'- Grady of the Chautauquan Daily: "You can tell from my poems I love lists. Walt Whitman did, too. I had somebody tell me once—and I think it's true—when you start.....
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