This Introduction to Poetry course is about learning to read poems and to write about them intelligently and elegantly. To combine the study of poetry with a focus on writing makes tremendous sense, since both enterprises involve attention to the many ways in which language can work in the service of emotions and ideas. Studying a range of poems from the Middle Ages to the present, we will explore the elements of poetic expression--sound, meter, image, metaphor, form, etc.--to become skillful readers. And with the luxury of a small class (twelve students) we can focus on critiques and revision to produce polished final papers.