The Mind-Reader (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)

At a glance:

“The Mind-Reader” is a dramatic monologue in the tradition of Robert Browning, the nineteenth century British poet, written in blank verse. It is the statement of a mind reader, one perpetually ensconced in a café somewhere in Italy. He talks to the poet about how he came to be a mind reader, how he practices his “craft,” and how he feels about what he does.

The poem begins with nineteen lines exploring what it means when something is really lost. Not till the end of the poem does the reader really find out why he speaks of these things. He begins with an image of a...

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