In the six stanza poem, "One Art," by Elizabeth Bishop, the poet points out that one ought to be almost indifferent to the loss of any given thing - and not upset - because some things actually want to be lost. It appears as though Bishop is suggesting that one ought to almost be happy for lost things for they must have wanted to be lost. ... Largely, "Bishop's lines share her ironic tips for learning to lose and live with loss" (Candlish Millier, 122). ... Elizabeth Bishop continues with her notion of the art of losing when in the fourth and the fifth stanzas she examines ...

• Word Count: 850
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

"One Art," by Elizabeth Bishop, is an emotional elegy in which losing isn't just an art, but a mastered skill. ... The first stanza gives the poem an instructional structure to it, where the reader is the student and Bishop the teacher. ... Here Bishop breaks the pattern of inanimate objects and dedicates a full stanza to focus on her final and most personal loss. The poems irony comes out through Bishops use of rhyming, rhythm, syntax, tone, and structure. ... This rhyme scheme gives the poem a cheerful beat, which was Bishop's intent to cover up the seriousness of the poem. ...

• Word Count: 799
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate