I don’t know what any of this means.
Here’s a reference to a poem I don’t understand.
I’m quoting now a line from a poem I don’t understand.
Here’s a reference to another poem.
I’m quoting the poem now. Look, I’ve
cited the poem’s title and the name
of the poet and the line numbers and
I have even placed quotation marks
around the lines I have quoted.
I know the writer is saying something
but I don’t know what it is.
If you look closely at this phrase here,
I’m sure you will be just as confused.
If I were to sit here and study it for
about an hour I might get close, but
who has that kind of time?
And what if I did spend an hour
and at the end of it I was still lost?
That would be a total waste of 60 minutes.
This thing I’m quoting right here,
I think, is something kind of like a
metaphor, but I don’t understand it.
There, I have made six references
to the poems I don’t understand
in my essay final. I’m pretty sure
I’m done now and I am very proud
of my work.
michael jarmer 