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  ||> ==Bio==
 * ==William James Collins ==

In the early 1990s, Billy Collins became a popular figure in American poetry. He is known now as one of the most popular poets in the United States. He was born to Billy Collins Sr. an electrician, and Katherine Collins, a nurse, in 1941. He received a Bachelors Degree from The College of the Holy Cross in 1963 and received his Masters Degree in English from the University of California In 1967. In 2001 he was named Random Houses' 11th U.S. Poet Laureate after signing a six figure book contract. He is still living and plans on releasing many more books before his retirement. ||
 * William James Collins**(* 22. March 1941 in New York City. Collins is known world-wide for his poetry and his contributions to literature. He is best known for the books of poetry he has written. Examples include: The Art of Drowning (1995), Nine Horses (2002), The Trouble With Poetry (2005), and Ballistics (2008). (1, [|http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/278.])

Poetry links
media type="youtube" key="8xovLpim_1s" height="344" width="425" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuTNdHadwbk&feature=channel- The Dead media type="youtube" key="iuTNdHadwbk" height="344" width="425" ||
 * ||> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xovLpim_1s- The Country

Explication
Explication of "Another Reason Why I Don't Keep a Gun in the House"

In Billy Collin's poem, "Another Reason Why I Don't Keep a Gun in the House", he discusses about an annoying neighborhood dog. The poem is written in free verse, as there is no particular rhyming sequence. Billy Collins uses the word barking in every stanza, and connects the dog barking to something most people would not. Collin's poetry is different than other poets, as he uses a dry sense of humor, and takes the reader into a world where the imagery is crystal clear. This is why his poetry is extremely-highly rated and well-known.

The theme is "Man vs. Animal/Nature", as Collin's struggles to drown out the sound of a barking dog in his neighborhood.

As the poem begins, Collins comments how annoyingly awful the dogs barking is. He tries to rid his ears of the barking by closing all the windows and turning on music full blast. The music that he turns on, though, is a Beethoven symphony. As the music goes on, he begins to picture the dogs barking as if it were a part of the symphony. When Collins closes his eyes, he sees the dog performing his "solo," as the conductor seduces him with bacon. Collins has a wild imagination, and this poem definitely helps display how crazy, yet interesting, he can be.

As the reader reads the poem, there might be mixed reactions. One might think that he is absolutely crazy, whereas others might recognize his broad imagination. When he speaks of the dog having a solo in the show, his dry sense of humor comes into play. The whole idea of a man finding himself annoyed by a dog, then playing Beethoven to get his mind off of it, but then adding the dog to the symphony, is quite hysterical.

Collins has a sarcastic and humorous imagination, and expresses it magnificently in his poems- especially this one. He takes a simple annoyance and creates a masterpiece with a little music and thought.



Sources
"Billy Collins." __Poets.org.__ 10 December 2008.  