     A person can argue that a piece of literature should be interpreted one way, while another person might have a different idea about how that same piece of literature should be interpreted.  Every person has their own, individual interpretation of a text.  However, Billy Collins might argue that reading a piece of literature is not about interpreting it and finding a meaning, at all.  To Collins, a piece of literature, a poem or a story, should simply be read for entertainment; it does not have to have a huge meaning written in between the lines.  In the poem, Introduction to Poetry, by Billy Collins, the interpretation is that there should be no interpretation.

     In Collins' poem, the reader gets the opportunity to let go of the control of the author and enjoy the poem for what it is, a poem.  As Collins said, "drop a mouse into a poem and watch him probe his way out" (Collins 5-6).  The mouse is a symbol of the reader, and as Collins drops the reader into a poem, the reader has the ability to do what they want.  Collins uses diction, like the word "probe," to explain to the reader that they are able to explore and examine the poem without the guidance of the author, or without the need to dig up an interpretation.  Collins also states that he wants the readers to "waterski across the surface of a poem waving at the author's name on the shore" (Collins 9-11).  The diction used in these lines, like "waterski" and "waving," are carefree and fun, just like how Collins wants the reader to feel like when they are reading a piece of literature.  The diction creates a light and relaxed tone, which helps the reader also relax while they read and enjoy the poem, not having to worry about interpreting it and finding a deep meaning.  Collins does not want the reader to drown in a poem, trying to overanalyze and create an interpretation.  Throughout the poem, Collins creates imagery of the reader letting loose and having fun, while also briefly acknowledging the author from afar, letting the reader let go of the control from the author.  As the reader embodies a mouse and experiences fun activities, like waterskiing, the poem also embodies different objects.

     Throughout the poem, the poem itself embodies different objects.  In the poem, Collins says to "hold it up to the light like a color slide," "press an ear against its hive," "walk inside the poem's room," and "waterski across the surface of the poem" (Collins 2-3, 4, 7, 9-10).  Collins uses diction, like the words "light," "color slide," "hive," room," and "across the surface," to create the affect of the poem taking on a bigger, and bigger object.  It starts with a color slide.  It is small, and as the reader holds it up to the "light like a color slide," the reader can see through the small image of the poem and realize that there is nothing hidden within it; no hidden meaning, nothing (Collins 2-3).  The reader then moves on to "press an ear against its hive," like they are supposed to listen for the meaning held inside of its hive, but it's empty (Collins 4).  Next, the reader explores "the inside of the poem's room" (Collins 7).  Collins asks the reader to "feel the walls for a light switch"; to explore the structure of the poem and try to find the knowledge and meaning that comes with finding and turning on the light switch (Collins 8).  Finally, Collins asks the reader to "waterski across the surface of a poem" (Collins 9-10).  Here, the poem becomes a lake or an ocean, and Collins asks the reader to enjoy waterskiing and have fun while the reader glides along the surface of the poem, never to go underwater because the reader will drown if they try to find what is held behind the surface, at the bottom of the poem.  All of these actions let the reader explore more of the poem.  It starts with a color slide and gets bigger to the point where the poem is now a lake, essentially going from one small meaning and interpretation, to a broaden horizon where the readers can simply enjoy the poem.  The poem embodies a bigger and bigger object, until finally it becomes human.

     Throughout the poem, the poem takes on bigger and bigger objects as the reader continues to read the poem, and finally, the poem embodies a human, making the reader feel a strong connection with it.  The tone of the first four stanzas of the poem is light, happy, and carefree.  Words like "light" and "waterski" create this tone that the reader can enjoy the poem and not have to find some huge meaning by interpreting it (Collins 2,9).  However, the tone suddenly changes in the last two stanzas; it become dark with a sense of fear.  Collins states that all the readers do is "tie the poem to a chair with a rope and torture a confession out of it.  They begin beating it with a hose to find out what it really means" (Collins 12-16).  Collins uses diction, words like "tie," "torture," "confession," and "beating" to create this tone of misery (Collins 13-15).  The first four stanzas contrast the last two stanzas because the tone of the poem changes drastically from happy and light, to dark and dreaded.  In line thirteen, the poem becomes human as it is tied to a chair and tortured, creating a disturbing image and a deep connection with the reader because now that the poem has embodied a human, the reader fears for the poem and does not want anything to happen to it (Collins 13).  It scares the reader because as the poem is now human, it creates a feeling that this could happen to them and it creates the question as to why someone would ever want to do this to someone else.  By making the poem embody a human, the readers feel a deeper connection with them poem, helping them understand that beating an interpretation out of a piece of literature is not what they should be doing.

     In the poem, Introduction to Poetry, by Billy Collins, the interpretation is that the readers should simply enjoy a piece of literature; there is no need for a huge interpretation.  By letting the reader lose control, the reader is able to explore and enjoy the piece of literature without the guidance of the author or having to interpret the piece and find a meaning.  As the poem represents bigger and bigger objects, the horizon broadens and the reader is able to see all of what the poem is and is able to have fun while reading the piece of literature.  Lastly, as the poem embodies a human, the readers are able to create a deep connection with the poem and understand what exactly they are doing when they interpret a piece of literature.  There does not have to be a huge meaning in every poem or story; you can simply enjoy it.

