Visible Thinking: A Guide to Understanding Margaret Atwood's Poetry

Glen Downey, Comics in Education, www.comicsineducation.com

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There are many reasons why Margaret Atwood is awesome, not the least of which is her poetry. I've taught it many times and have had great success with it, especially when it comes to having students connect with it. A great example, that I've shared in the past, can be found in a previous post, "Margaret Atwood, Comics, and the Awakened Imagination."

When I read Atwood, what strikes me is her curiosity about things that have a kind of dual nature. I don't know...maybe that's the wrong expression. It's things that we can't pin down or fix...whether it's snakes, or photographs, or mushrooms, or the moon, or mirrors...

When we take a look at this little visible thinking exercise, I think there's a lot we can take away from it. I've always loved reading Atwood because of her preoccupation with the strange and delightfully odd nature of seemingly mundane things.

That's what a great poet does--they think about these things. Then, they let their gift with words do the rest.

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If you enjoyed this article then you might also enjoy...

• Margaret Atwood, Comics, and the Awakened Imagination

• The Visible Thinking Project: To Be Or Not To Be... What I Am

• The Visible Thinking Project: Pip Pirrip's Curious Name in Great Expectations
  

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