This work investigates the evolution and stylistic shifts within English-language poetry throughout the twentieth century. John Press, a noted critic and scholar of the era, utilizes a comprehensive survey of major poets and movements to argue that modern verse reflects the broader social and intellectual fragmentation of the period. The text provides a structured analysis of how traditional forms were dismantled and reconstructed by writers responding to the pressures of a changing world.

Critics and scholars frequently cite this work as a reliable reference for understanding the mid-century academic perspective on modernism. Readers often note the formal, scholarly tone of the prose, which serves as a standard introduction for students of twentieth-century literature.