高启的诗学理论由“一总三分”的框架构成。所谓“总”，是指“求全”“求至”，成为“大方”之家。“三分”则指三个层面的内容：诗之“要”，即“格”“意”“趣”；诗之“次”，即“声”与“言”；诗之“补”，即“江山之助”“在而可考”。高启的诗学理论深受严羽《沧浪诗话》及佛禅人物与思想影响，同时也与其以性情为本的创作个性、隐逸田园、仕宦南京的人生经历等有密切的关系。在元明诗歌史与诗学史上，高启的诗学理论以盛唐为嚆矢，以宗唐为模范，对扭转元末纤秾缛丽诗风有不世之功，同时“关有明一代文运”，对明代诗学理论的演变产生了深远影响。

Gao Qi's poetic theory consists of one general standard and three specific concerns. The general standard for a great poet is to be well-rounded and versatile. The three specific concerns are listed according to their priority. The first and foremost concern of poetry is ge (form), yi(will), and qu (taste). What follows are secondary component of poetry: sheng (prosody) and yan (language). In terms of the source and function, he emphasized the importance of travelling across the landscape, as well as the autobiographical and archiving function of poetry. His poetic theory was not only tethered to the legacy of Yan Yu and Chan Buddhism, but also his personality, and his experience of being a recluse and official. In the history of poetry and poetics of the Yuan and Ming dynasties, Gao Qi's poetic theory, by deriving from the golden age of the Tang dynasty, which he took as a model, had a profound effect on the reversal of the florid poetic style of the late Yuan dynasty and the evolution of poetic theory in the Ming dynasty.