 The poem was criticized by <unk> Brooks and Robert Penn Warren in their textbook Understanding Poetry first published in 1938 . Brooks and Warren were two of the major contributors to the New Criticism movement , where its supporters opposed using literature as a surrogate for religion . New Criticism proponents analyzed poetry on its aesthetic formulae and excluded reader 's response , the author 's intention , historical and cultural contexts , and <unk> bias from their analysis . They attributed the popularity of Trees largely to its religious appeal and believed it was a " stock response that has nothing to do , as such , with poetry , " adding : 
