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Artificial Verse

You give your verse a prosy st[r]ain,
with stress complete the air,
but vain attempts too often strain
and stress is in the air.

Those discords mock your daily toil,
no editors efface them,
and as blank lines from blank uncoil
its difficult to face them.

An art so fruitless then forsake –
which though you’d fain excel in –
you never may contrive to make
both form and sense flow well in.



© Jonathan Robin Poem written 8 December 1991 Parody William COWPER Artificial Beauty - Lucianus see below


Artificial Beauty

You give your cheeks a rosy stain
With washes dye your hair,
But paint and washes both are vain
To give a youthful air.

Those wrinkles mock your daily toil
No labor will efface 'em,
You wear a mask of smoothest oil
Yet still with ease we trace 'em.

An art so fruitless then forsake,
Which though you much excel in,
You never can contrive to make
Old Hecuba young Helen.



William COWPER 1731_1800 Translation  Lucianus

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Comments

  • karabi
    June 21, 2007

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    Good

    Artificial Beauty flows naturally but its imitation, though very good in its conception, shows signs of strain. The author, it seems to me, is quite capable and could remove this defect if he tried hard enough.

  • waydownuponjoy
    February 3, 2007
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    wryly sly ...

    joy