Amherst poet Robert Francis responds to the question, "How important is humor to your poems?" and talks about how poetry and humor are closely related as both surprise you with unexpected combinations.
Amherst poet Robert Francis discusses the influence of his parents on his own character and how the contrasting temperaments combined to make him a poet.
Amherst poet Robert Francis discusses his fascination with and study of the praying mantis. Includes an anecdote about Robert Frost visiting Francis and remarking that the praying mantis shows "so clearly what it is in nature that you don't like."
Photograph of Robert Francis and family members sitting at a table outside under trellises. Francis' father Ebenezer F. Francis and stepmother Ida May Allen Francis are sitting across from Robert (fourth from left).