Letter: News in poetry

Brendan Smith
Thursday 09 October 1997 23:02 BST
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Sir: Ruth Padel's article on National Poetry Day (7 October) pricked my conscience. I went hunting for the Daily Poem and found it sandwiched between the following stories: "Shoppers take wing for London"; "Tourists flown home after firm's collapse"; "Frequent fliers have more sex". Have I become more aware, due to Ruth Padel, or are your headline writers part of the "movement", another Hughes or just Larkin about? Metaphor, alliteration, rhythm, not to mention sexual allusion are constituents of the poetic convention.

BRENDAN SMITH

Purley, Surrey

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