The Eleventh Annual Lecture of the National Book League delivered by T. S. Eliot at Central Hall, Westminster on Thursday 19th November 1953. T. S. Eliot's "The Three Voices of Poetry" defines three modes of poetic composition: the poet talking to himself, the poet addressing an audience, and the poet embodying a dramatic character in verse. Eliot argues that a poem written for one person is an illusion, with even love poems intended to be overheard, and he emphasizes the importance of the dramatic voice in creating imaginary characters who speak to each other.