Interpreting Poetry Like a Champ

I really enjoyed Perrine's article on how to properly interpret poetry. I have often asked myself wether or not poets write poems with specific inspiration and interpretation in mind, or if they write with purposeful ambiguity to allow the reader to use his imagination. Perrine does state, "He (the poet) cannot say, 'What I really meant was...' without admitting failure, or without saying something different (and usually much less) than what his poem said" (Perrine). This line of the article supports my latter thought. However, reading on, I am intrigued and enlightened by Perrine's  "criteria" for proper interpretation. Though I have never interpreted a poem in this manner, these rules seem fail-proof. Using these criteria, a reader is forced to think deeply about a poem's meaning for the guidelines rule out half-thought interpretations that one may have gotten away with before reading this article. Despite the deeper thinking that is required, Perrine's criteria actually make discerning the true meaning of a poem easier, for a reader can be confident in his analysis.
I am anxious to use Perrine's advice this year in AP Lit. Poetry and the interpretation of have never been a strong point of mine; however, in learning to account for all details as well as to avoid assumptions, I am presented with a challenge that will ultimately lead to success in my discernment of meaning as well as improvement in my analysis skills. Moreover, I am anxious to see how our AP Lit class as a whole works with Perrine's criteria. If we are able to follow the guidelines for the most part, then we will produce universal interpretations. That would be neat! However, would it eliminate our in-class discussions over the meanings of certain works? I hope not-I quite enjoy those!