You make me think of many men Once met to be forgot again Or merely resurrected In a parenthesis of wit That found them hastening through it Too brisk to be inspected
This piece was one of Moore’s first to be published, featured in Poetry magazine in 1915. It is an excellent example of her wit and a wonderful way to tell someone that they aren’t shit. Structurally, I’m a sucker for a sestain but it is the combination of the AABCCB rhyme scheme and the iambic tetrameter that makes this piece flow so beautifully and hit so hard. Marianne Moore was a gangster.
Excellent analysis!! So simple, yet it spears the heart, thinking about all the lost time with one’s undeserving! Great choice! Can’t wait to read more