Poetry and the Built Environment

This insightful book examines how poetry interacts with our built environment, revealing its power to shape our understanding and experiences.

In Poetry and the Built Environment, the author explores the intricate relationship between poetry and various forms of art, emphasizing how these mediums guide our experiences. This book presents a fresh perspective on criticism, viewing poetry as part of the broader arts within our constructed surroundings. The author illustrates how art can influence our understanding of space, movement, and our interactions with the world around us. By drawing parallels between poetry and other artistic forms like gardens and architecture, the text highlights the cultural significance of poems as artifacts designed to resonate with our diverse human experiences.

Fowler argues that as we navigate through our built environment, we utilize our developed skills to interpret the complexities it presents. This process mirrors how we engage with poetry, where art activates our bodily awareness and connects the tangible with the abstract. The book consists of ten essays that delve into the works of various poets and artists, ranging from historical figures like Geoffrey Chaucer to contemporary voices such as Tracy K. Smith. Fowler introduces the concept of the flesh of art, which underscores the physical and phenomenological aspects of our interactions with artistic works.

Concluding with 43 theses, Poetry and the Built Environment articulates how art can shape our identities and social positions, particularly in times of uncertainty. Through her examination, Fowler posits that poetry serves as a vital tool for transformation, equipping us with strategies to navigate the complexities of our world and our place within it.