Self-Portrait as David LynchBy David RoderickI wear a flower in my lapel. I like the sweetness of its lie in my nose. A carnation, the fool’s flower...Social CommentariesPopular CultureLivingThe MindActivitiesJobs & WorkingArts & SciencesPhotography & FilmStanza FormsTercetMetersFree VerseTechniquesImageryMetaphorPersonaTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueJoy & Contentment + 12 more
Linnaeus in LaplandBy Lorine NiedeckerNothing worth noting except an Andromeda with quadrangular shoots— the boots of the people wet inside...NatureActivitiesSchool & LearningTravels & JourneysTechniquesPersonaTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueDisappointment + 2 more
Unknown Girl in the Maternity WardBy Anne SextonChild, the current of your breath is six days long. You lie, a small knuckle on my white bed; lie, fisted...LivingParenthoodStanza FormsRhymed StanzaTechniquesPersonaTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue
The Moss of His SkinBy Anne SextonIt was only important to smile and hold still, to lie down beside him and to rest awhile, to be folded...RelationshipsFamily & AncestorsTechniquesConfessionalPersonaTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue
p1Hitting BottomBy Marilyn NelsonOur love still young, our marriage new, Robert and I felt blackness as a second vow, a spiritual seal...LoveHeartache & LossSocial CommentariesRace & EthnicityHistory & PoliticsLivingDeathParenthoodSorrow & GrievingThe MindDoubt & ContemplationRelationshipsFamily & AncestorsMen & WomenArts & SciencesPainting & SculptureTypes/ModesConcrete or Pattern PoetryDramatic MonologueAngerAnxiety & InsecurityDisappointmentGriefMelancholy & Despair + 17 more
p1Little Albert, 1920By Joyce Carol OatesI was Little Albert. Nine months old in the famous film. In a white cotton nightie, on a lab table sitting...Social CommentariesLivingInfancyThe MindArts & SciencesSciencesTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueAnxiety & InsecurityMelancholy & Despair + 3 more
The MiserBy Mona Van DuynI was out last night, the very picture of a sneak, dark and hunched-over, breaking and entering again...LoveDesire & PassionSocial CommentariesCities & Urban LifeMoney & EconomicsLivingGrowing OldLife ChoicesThe MindArts & SciencesReading & BooksTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue + 6 more
Madam’s Past HistoryBy Langston HughesMy name is Johnson— Madam Alberta K. The Madam stands for business. I’m smart that way. I had a HAIR...Social CommentariesCities & Urban LifeMoney & EconomicsRace & EthnicityActivitiesJobs & WorkingStanza FormsRhymed StanzaTechniquesPersonaTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue + 5 more
MessengerBy R. T. SmithTwo nights he came to me, mute, on fire, no dream. I woke to find the window embered and fog filling...LivingArts & SciencesPhilosophyTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue
The Northeast CorridorBy Donald RevellThe bar in the commuter stationThe Title: "The Northeast Corridor" In his book The Art of Attention: A Poet’s ...Social CommentariesCities & Urban LifeLivingGrowing OldThe MindMemory & NostalgiaTime & BrevityActivitiesTravels & JourneysMetersFree VerseTechniquesImageryPersonaTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueAngerBoredom + 11 more
WindigoBy Louise ErdrichYou knew I was coming for you, little one, when the kettle jumped into the fire. Towels flapped on the...NatureWinterLivingThe BodyRelationshipsFamily & AncestorsHome LifeMythology & FolkloreFairy-tales & LegendsHalloweenMetersFree VerseTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue + 7 more
BaudelaireBy Delmore SchwartzWhen I fall asleep, and even during sleep, I hear, quite distinctly, voices speaking Whole phrases, ...Arts & SciencesPoetry & PoetsTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueAnxiety & InsecurityDisappointmentGriefHumor
The Pope Replies to the Ayatollah KhomeiniBy Ishmael ReedMy Dear Khomeini: I read your fourteen thousand dollar ad asking me why the Vatican waited all of these...Social CommentariesReligionArts & SciencesHumor & SatireMetersFree VerseTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueHumor + 2 more
Gunga DinBy Rudyard KiplingYou may talk o’ gin and beer When you’re quartered safe out ’ere, An’ you’re sent to penny-fights an...Social CommentariesWar & ConflictHistory & PoliticsMythology & FolkloreHeroes & PatriotismStanza FormsRhymed StanzaTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue + 2 more
The King of OwlsBy Louise ErdrichThey say I am excitable! How could I not scream? The Swiss monk’s tonsure spun till it blurred yet his...Social CommentariesHistory & PoliticsActivitiesIndoor ActivitiesArts & SciencesMetersFree VerseTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue + 2 more
Francine’s RoomBy Louise ErdrichThis is Tarsus, one place like anyplace else. And this is my circuit, the rodeo, fair. The farmboys ...NatureWeatherSocial CommentariesGender & SexualityLivingLife ChoicesThe BodyRelationshipsHome LifeMen & WomenTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue + 5 more
Briefly It Enters, and Briefly SpeaksBy Jane KenyonI am the blossom pressed in a book, found again after two hundred years. . . . I am the maker, the lover...LoveRomantic LoveRelationshipsTechniquesPersonaRefrainTypes/ModesArs PoeticaDramatic Monologue + 2 more
p1François Villon on the Condition of Pity in Our TimeBy Larry LevisFrères humains qui après nous vivez,Soon they’ll have the speed freak twistingOn a scaffold, soon the birdsWill...Social CommentariesCrime & PunishmentHistory & PoliticsLivingDeathThe BodyArts & SciencesPoetry & PoetsTypes/ModesDramatic MonologueAngerBlameMelancholy & Despair + 6 more
The Untrustworthy SpeakerBy Louise GlückDon’t listen to me; my heart’s been broken. I don’t see anything objectively. I know myself; I’ve learned...LoveBreak-ups & Vexed LoveRealistic & ComplicatedLivingSorrow & GrievingRelationshipsHome LifeTechniquesConfessionalTypes/ModesDramatic MonologuePastoral + 5 more
Nothing But ColorBy AiI didn’t write Etsuko, I sliced her open. She was carmine inside like a sea bass and empty. No viscera...LivingDeathMetersFree VerseTypes/ModesDramatic Monologue