Be Careful How you Judge a Poem

I have always been of the view that one should judge a writer by the quality of their writing and not allow one’s own likes and dislikes to intrude when forming such judgements. This is, I believe particularly important when the writer’s political perspective differs from your own.

 

One does not, for example, have to be a Conservative to enjoy the poetry of Philip Larkin, nor does one need to be a man (or woman) of the left to appreciate the work of the poet W. H. Auden. Both poets where (and r...