ABSTRACT
T he poetry of Gjertrud Schnackenberg elicits great admirationfor its technical accomplishment and its scope of historical and cultural knowledge. Since her debut chapbook, Portraits and Elegies, appeared in 1982, Schnackenberg has been regarded by many as the future of formal verse. The long spaces between subsequent volumes add to the eager anticipation felt by Schnackenberg's admirers, who cherish her mastery of intricate metrical combinations and her unabashed use of rhyme. Equally eager are her detractors, who view her as a throwback to a mannered, superficial kind of poetry long made obsolete by the late-20thcentury poets.
