A structural approach which focuses on social and economic conditions under which poverty exists and which de-personalizes causes is used to study the extent and trends of poverty in general and Maine in particular. The 1980 Census reported that 13% of Maine's population was poor, but since income in Maine is generally low many people fall in and out of poverty with only slight changes in their situation. Half of Maine's poor are adults of working age (18-64). The largest single factor contributing to poverty among adults is under-employment. Wages in Maine have traditionally been much lower that the national average and the number of low-wage jobs is increasing. Emergence of the two-worker household has increased family income and stablized the poverty rate somewhat. Changes in the role of women as workers outside the home have outstripped their opportunity to earn wages, and concerns over a trend toward "feminization of poverty" are not unfounded. Although family planning and other programs have resulted in reduced family size, the number of children living in poverty remains unchanged; Maine's rural communities in particular have high rates of poverty. The appendix contains Maine maps and rural/suburban/urban demographic comparisons. (BRR)