Alcestis On The Poetry Circuit Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis

Rhyme Scheme: A BCD EFGHEIJKK LDMN JOPQRSTUVDW XXYUZUA2B2 C2D2E2F2G2H2 I2UDJ2XK2L2M2N2 O2P2Q2R2N2P2 S2D2

In Memoriam Marina Tsvetayeva Anna Wickham Sylvia Plath Shakespeare s sister etc etcA
-
The best slaveB
does not need to be beatenC
She beats herselfD
-
Not with a leather whipE
or with stick or twigsF
not with a blackjackG
or a billyclubH
but with the fine whipE
of her own tongueI
the subtle beatingJ
of her mindK
against her mindK
-
For who can hate her half so wellL
as she hates herselfD
who can match the finesseM
of her self abuseN
-
Years of trainingJ
are required for thisO
Twenty yearsP
of subtle self indulgenceQ
self denialR
until the subjectS
thinks herself a queenT
yet a beggarU
both at the same timeV
She must doubt herselfD
in everything but loveW
-
She must choose passionatelyX
badlyX
She must feel lost as a dogY
without her masterU
She must refer all moral questionsZ
to her mirrorU
She must fall in love with a cossackA2
or a poetB2
-
She must never go out of the houseC2
unless veiled in paintD2
She must wear tight shoesE2
so she always remembers her bondageF2
She must never forgetG2
she is rooted in the groundH2
-
Though she is quick to learnI2
admittedly cleverU
her natural doubt of herselfD
should make her so weakJ2
that she dabbles brilliantlyX
in half a dozen talentsK2
thus embellishesL2
but does not changeM2
our lifeN2
-
If she's an artistO2
comes close to geniusP2
the very fact of her giftQ2
should cause her such painR2
that she will take her own lifeN2
rather than best usP2
-
after she dies we will cryS2
make her a saintD2

Erica Jong



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