by Wendy Cope (1945-)
Everybody in this room is bored.
The poems drag, the voice and gestures irk.
He can’t be interrupted or ignored.
Poor fools, we came here of our own accord,
And some of us have paid to hear this jerk.
Everybody in this room is bored.
The silent cry goes up, “How long, O Lord?”
But nobody will scream or go berserk.
He won’t be interrupted or ignored,
Or hit by eggs, or savaged by a horde
Of desperate people maddened by his work.
Everybody in this room is bored,
Except the poet. We are his reward,
Pretending to indulge his every quirk.
He won’t be interrupted or ignored.
At last it’s over. How we all applaud!
The poet thanks us with a modest smirk.
Everybody in the room was bored.
He wasn’t interrupted or ignored.
Note from Joe: This poem is an example of the poetic form called a "villanelle". The most famous villanelle is probably Dylan Thomas’ great poem, "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night". Other famous villanelles include Elizabeth Bishop’s "One Art" and Theodore Roethke’s "The Waking".