1. Getting Started
Let’s explore some strategies for using compression in contemporary poetry.
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- write a poem employing compression
- identify effective revisions for better compression
2. Video: Introducing Compression
Access a transcript of this video.
3. Approaches to Compression
Compression refers to two things at once: using fewer words and maximizing the impact of words. In poetry, this principle is also sometimes called “word economy.” The idea is to achieve focused, powerful language that packs a punch and doesn’t waste time on distractions.
Click through the image reel below to learn more about some key compression strategies.
Access a transcript of this image reel.
4. Knowledge Check
Great! You’re really getting the hang of this “compression” thing.
Hmm. Not quite. Click through the examples in the image reel once more, then try again.
5. Concision
The “tightness” of compression is most easily recognizable in short poems. Concise language, used carefully and impactfully, can feel more muscular than expansive language that is generic and dull.
Click on the image on the left to read “[I get lonelier and lonelier…]” by Chelsea Minnis. Use the following questions to guide your reading:
- How does this poem employ compression to draw the language tight?
- How do the “jumps” between the poem’s lines and sentences feel?
- Consider details here that haven’t been edited away. Why are the capsules pink? Why is the dress ruffled? Why “a mess” of emeralds?
6. Weighting Language
Not all words in a poem are equally impactful. Some types of words command more attention and have a greater impact on the gravity of a poem.
Click through the image reel below to learn more about the “weight” of different words in a poem.
Access a transcript of this image reel.
7. Knowledge Check
“I voraciously read through the letter from the man I worked with. His words were warm, comforting, and kind. His letter made me feel at ease.”
Great job! You’re really getting the hang of this “compression” thing.
Hmm. Not quite. Consider reviewing the image reel on weighting language, then try again.
8. Intentionality
Even longer poems use compression in order to strengthen word choice and impact. In fact, using compression in longer poems is an effective way to control and direct the reader’s attention.
Click on the image on the left to read “Lucifer” by Dean Young. Use the following questions to guide your reading:
- How do the verbs in the poem’s first sentence build momentum?
- How do the strong, specific nouns build detail in the poem without adding too many words?
- How does Young condense sentences for tightness and impact?
- How do the sentence fragments feel as you read the poem?
9. Prompt: Employing Compression
Write a poem that employs compression via one of the following:
- Option 1: Write a poem of no more than 50 words. Use implication rather than explanation.
- Option 2: Write a poem in which every sentence or line contains a strong, specific verb.
- Option 3: Write a poem on any subject, then strip away all distractive and repetitive phrasing. Eliminate all adjectives and adverbs by making nouns and verbs more specific.
Share the resulting poem with some fellow writers whose opinions you trust, either informally or in a workshop setting. Ask them (and yourself) the following:
- Where does the poem’s language feel concise and effective?
- Does the compression of this poem achieve the right level of “tightness”?
- What unnecessary phrasing can be removed to make the poem more impactful?
- Are the nouns and verbs in this poem doing enough work?
10. Quiz: Revising Toward Compression
Want to test your knowledge? Try the following quiz. For each passage below, identify the revision that utilizes compression most effectively.
#1. “The irises, now budding, were just grown enough to look as though they were peeking at us.”
#2. “It’s as if the hives of bees seem to sing songs.”
#3. “I thought about everything that happened, and then I decided to end it all.”
#4. “She walked down the road, slipping and tripping along as she went.”
Results
Before You Go
Check out the following resources on compression:
- Davidson, Chad, and Gregory Fraser. (2009). Writing Poetry: Creative and Critical Approaches. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Longenbach, James. (2013). The Virtues of Poetry. Graywolf Press.
- Shaffer, Eric. (2018). “Compression and the Elegant Little Mechanisms of Meaning Known as Poems.” North American Review.
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