The Nature of Proof in the Interpretation of Poetry by Laurence Perrine

"These two criteria, I ask you to notice, are not different from those we bring to the judgment of a new scientific hypothesis."

Poetry is something I have always had love for, finding pleasure in the hidden meanings and thought-provoking words.  To be honest, I didn't really like the way Perrine simmilarly linked the judging of any interpretation of a poem to the judgment of a new scientific hypothesis.  Poetry doesn't seem to be something that should be connected with science as it is more deep and mind exercising.  Anyway, as for the first criteria Perrine says should be used to judge the interpretation of any poem, I had very conflicted feelings.  It only makes sense that a correct interpretation must be able to account for every detail and if it doesn't, then it is wrong.  One shouldn't assume things about a poem that aren't supported by the details and context of a poem.  The thing I disagree with, though, is that I feel like poetry should mean anything that a reader wants to see in it.  I feel as though the reader should happiness, saddness, or whatever feelings he or she should so desire.

I do completely agree with what Perrine states as the problems with symbols.  Symbols are very different from literary devices such as metaphors or similes.  As Perrine states, symbols mean something much more than what they are, whereas these literary devices like metaphors or similes mean something other than what they are.  This is something I never really thought about but once I saw it written on paper and discussed, I realized the truth in what was stated and I totally agreed in the statement.  The one thing a reader must never confuse with is that although symbols mean something much more than what they are, that does not mean they can mean anything.  Just as there is always a correct interpretation to a poem, as Perrine describes, there is always a correct interpretation of a symbol.  Similar to the interpretation of a poem intself, the interpretation of a symbol should also rely on the fewest assumptions.  Details must fully support the interpretation of the symbol.  Unlike my belief that a poem can be interpreted by a reader to be whatever he or she wishes it to be, a symbol should never be mistakenly interpreted to mean something other than what it really is.