war, poetry & the poet's fiat



No, not one of Pound's imagist poems... This is Mário Quintana in his sophisticated simplicity:


WAR

Planes shot down;
crosses falling from the sky.


What real poetry is like:


ON PAGINATION

Poetry books should have wide margins, several blank pages and enough blanks on each printed page so that children may fill them in with cats, men, planes, houses, chimneys, trees, moons, bridges, cars, dogs, horses, oxen, plaits and stars which will themselves become part of the poems.


Life according to the poet:


RHYTHM

The door
the housewife moves and sweeps it clean
sweeps it clean
sweeps it clean

The basin
the young girl cleans her teeth
cleans her teeth
cleans her teeth

The brook
the washerwoman beats her clothes
beats her clothes
beats her clothes

until at last
                  the world goes round
                                                      and round and round

the string is off, it's set in motion like a top!



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