Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal, Now the White - a Poetry Friday post

[kellyrfineman]

Whether true or not, it's been reported that Alfred, Lord Tennyson once said that others may have written better poetry than he, but none had written poems that sounded better. He may be on to something there, because he was certainly ( as I have commented before) a master of assonance (repetition of vowel sounds), alliteration (repetition of

Comments

[ext_142099]

Wow. What stunning poetry! Thanks for sharing it, Kelly, and for the discussion/explanation afterward.

[kellyrfineman]

You are most welcome. This poem has also been set to music at least three times, including by Benjamin Britten.

[kellyrfineman]

I've gotta say that the first line is the one I love the best, evoking for me the notion of Rose Red and Snow White, even though I sincerely doubt that association was intentional. And I truly adore the final stanza. *swoon*

[kellyrfineman]

Great image choice, either way. I really like this poem, charged as it is - something one wouldn't realize, really, unless one bothers to look up ancient mythology and think about it a bit.

[mlyearofreading]

Thank you again this week for another installment of Kelly Fineman's Poetry College. And for the inclusion of vocabulary that is glorious, shimmering AND fitting, all in the same post. You know which word I'm talking about!!

I'll never look at the Persied meteor showers the same way again.

[kellyrfineman]

I'm guessing "glimmering", since it seems unlikely that you selected "horndog" as your word. But it could be Danaë.

[mlyearofreading]

What makes "horndog" so unlikely? (because that, of course, was the one!!!)

:D

[kellyrfineman]

HA!