Review of Spent by Mark Doty

Spent by Mark Doty, a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on April 23, 2013.  The poet reveals in his notes that he was locked out of his house one day and wondered if the experience of pushing himself through a window was similar to being born.  From there, he went on to wonder if dying and moving on to the next world would be a similar experience.  Mr. Doty admits that the poem began as a narrative; I agree--the first half reads like a story rather than a poem.  The narrative sets the scene and mood for the actual poetry which begins after it.