Imagery Specified by Metaphors in "Introduction to Poetry" by Billy Collins

In “Introduction to Poetry”, Billy Collins uses a calm and humorous tone by using imagery specified by metaphors which shows that Poetry is not supposed to be over-analyzed but to be read in a more simple and patient way. Collins begins by saying to “take a poem and hold it up to the light like a color slide”. This simply means that you need to make the poem clear and reveal all the different meanings of it. In the third stanza he says to “drop a mouse into a poem and watch him probe his way out”. This teaches the reader that you should explore all the different parts of poem and eventually you will find the meaning of it. Instead all we want to do is “tie the poem to a chair with rope and torture a confession out of it” which means that people do not patiently read poems rather they over-analyze it and study it to the point where they are not enjoyed. Collins uses a calm and humorous tone that shows that poetry is a patient process which is to be enjoyed rather than people frustratingly over-analyzing it to find its meaning.