How to Think Like a Poet

From Homer, Sappho and Rumi, to Shakespeare and Sylvia Plath, how did poets make the world anew? What can we learn from the magic, wisdom and humour of their poetry? Poet and writer Dai George asks how poetry can help us to understand justice, dreams or anger. From the genius of the Ancient Greeks through to the love poetry and metaphysics of the Renaissance, through to the New York poets of the 20th century, this is the ultimate guide to the greatest writers of the human age.

In this Ethical Matters talk, Dai introduces the great works of poetry, and how we can read them. He addresses questions poets have grappled with: How can we truly describe the world? How can we express love, grief or friendship? How can poetry help us to understand justice, dreams or anger?

Dai’s book, How to Think Like a Poet: The Poets That Made Our World and Why We Need Them paints vivid pictures of a global selection of renowned poets throughout history: from Sappho, Li Bai and Rumi, to William Shakespeare and John Donne, to Frank O Hara, Pablo Neruda and Sylvia Plath.