Subjectivity, poetry, theory, death. A brief history of death in poetry ; Post-structuralist theory romances postmodern poetry ; The blooming anxiety of post-structuralist thought -- A rich inflammation or a dead bloom? The poetry of Adrienne Rich and the theory of Harold Bloom. A history of death in Rich ; Blooming with language/Dying in language ; The wreck of language -- John Ashbery's demand for self-reflection. The riches and the limits of language ; From Bloomian anxiety to De Manian irony ; The demands of reading and writing -- Jorie Graham: hollows and voids. Skinning matters ; The void of literature ; Outside indifference -- Barrett Watten: from the other side of the machine. Anxiety-irony-anguish-obsession ; Welcome to the machine ; The destitute machine -- The convergence of poetry and theory. A brief history of death in poetry (Reprise) ; When poetry and theory meet -- Glossary.