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The question is which matters more: the poem or the ecosystem in which the poem exists? In my opinion, there are lots of bad poems that are revered as masterpieces. However, I'm just a guy that doesn't particularly like poetry and my opinion is thoroughly irrelevant. This discussion centers on the fact that some poems are only "the best American poems" if they're considered to be something they're not. It erodes the authority of the art because it reveals that the opinion of the people who should matter may not be relevant, either. in the end, what is "good?"