16 pages • 32 minutes read
Stephen DobynsLoud Music
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1987A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
“Over a Cup of Coffee” by Stephen Dobyns
This poem is a useful comparison to “Loud Music”: both begin in the mundane and then delve into philosophical questions about existence. Written in similarly long lines, “Over a Cup of Coffee” is also useful for better understanding Dobyns’s style.
“On the Way to Work” by Stephen Dunn
Born in 1939, just two years before Dobyns, Stephen Dunn is a contemporary to Dobyns and an important poet to consider when analyzing Dobyns’s work. Dunn also writes about everyday topics, such as going to work, using the everyday as a jumping off point into the philosophical or abstract. “On the Way to Work” is no exception; it chronicles seeing a bumper sticker that spurs existential thoughts.
“White Dog” by Carl Phillips
Carl Phillips, born in 1959, writes in a very different style—short lines with abrupt turns of phrase and arresting syntax. “White Dog” offers an interesting contrast to Dobyns’s work for these rhythmical and formal reasons.
Further Literary Resources
"Stephen Dobyns: Part I" and "Stephen Dobyns: Part II" in The Cortland Review
In these in-depth interviews, Stephen Dobyns shares his journey to becoming a writer and his thoughts on poetic form, the importance of music and rhythm in his long lines, and revision.
“Writing the Reader’s Life” by Stephen Dobyns
In this essay, Dobyns writes about the function and purpose of poetry, form and structure, and his view of the creative process.
"Poetry Questions: Stephen Dobyns" in The New Yorker
Dobyns is known for writing poems that are witty, humorous, and comical. This interview delves into Dobyns’s poem “Determination” and seeks to answer the question about how Dobyns chose to go about writing a comic poem.
Listen to Poem
In this reading, provided by the Overlook Tutorial Academy’s Poem Every Day Project, an actor reads “Loud Music” with soft music playing in the background.
