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Petition

Sir, no man's enemy, forgiving all
But will his negative inversion, be prodigal:
Send to us power and light, a sovereign touch
Curing the intolerable neural itch,
The exhaustion of weaning, the liar's quinsy,
And the distortions of ingrown virginity.
Prohibit sharply the rehearsed response
And gradually correct the coward's stance;
Cover in time with beams those in retreat
That, spooted, they turn though the reverse were great;
Publish each healer that in city lives
Or country houses at the end of drives;
Harrow the house of the dead; look shining at
New styles of architecture, a change of heart.

Submitted: Friday, January 03, 2003


Read poems about / on: city, change, power, house, light, time, heart

Comments about this poem (Petition by WH Auden )

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  • Baabaa B. (11/9/2008 5:21:00 AM)

    -disputable, who is it said to whom......who is this 'Sir' 'no man's enemy'?
    -'will'-as verb or noun
    -written to God, Jesus Christ, imagined person
    -there is something God like in this 'Sir'- who 'send to us power and light'.

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