A Poetry Reading At West Point Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCDEF GHIJKD LMNOPO QRSTOO UOVWXO N| I read to the entire plebe class | A |
| in two batches Twice the hall filled | B |
| with bodies dressed alike each toting | C |
| a copy of my book What would my | D |
| shrink say if I had one about | E |
| such a dream if it were a dream | F |
| - | |
| Question and answer time | G |
| quot Sir quot a cadet yelled from the balcony | H |
| and gave his name and rank and then | I |
| closing his parentheses yelled | J |
| quot Sir quot again quot Why do your poems give | K |
| me a headache when I try | D |
| - | |
| to understand them quot he asked quot Do | L |
| you want that quot I have a gift for | M |
| gentle jokes to defuse tension | N |
| but this was not the time to use it | O |
| quot I try to write as well as I can | P |
| what it feels like to be human quot | O |
| - | |
| I started picking my way care | Q |
| fully for he and I were after | R |
| all pained by the same dumb longings | S |
| quot I try to say what I don't know | T |
| how to say but of course I can't | O |
| get much of it down at all quot | O |
| - | |
| By now I was sweating bullets | U |
| quot I don't want my poems to be hard | O |
| unless the truth is if there is | V |
| a truth quot Silence hung in the hall | W |
| like a heavy fabric My own | X |
| head ached quot Sir quot he yelled quot Thank you Sir quot | O |
| - | |
| - | |
| Anonymous submission | N |
William Matthews
(1)
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