How it Works1 min ago
This Be The Verse
19 Answers
They flump you up your mum and dad
They may not mean to but they do
Why does ths poem work ?
They may not mean to but they do
Why does ths poem work ?
Answers
1 to 19 of 19
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It's written in iambic tetrameter, (tetra=4) of two syllables, with the stress on the second of each syllable pair. Each syllable pair makes up what's known as a ''foot'' and four feet make up the line. So it has a familiar ''meter'', i.e. Dee-DAH, Dee-DAH, Dee-DAH, Dee-DAH. Otherwise, for me, it's of little merit.
I don't know why it works. All I can say is that it does and never a truer word was written than the content of this poem:
They fu*k you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fu*ked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.
Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.
They fu*k you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fu*ked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.
Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.
Larkin would have been considered a lucky man by most people. He had a good education, a job as a librarian that allowed him the time he needed for his verse, and, although he never married, plenty of girlfriends.
I don't believe his parents mucked him up. Perhaps he just needed a course of anti-depressants
I don't believe his parents mucked him up. Perhaps he just needed a course of anti-depressants
A little known fact is that Philip Larkin originally wrote this for ABers.
They fu*k you up, your Mod and Ed.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They suspend you for the faults you had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fu*ked up in their turn
By ABers in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were drunk or stern
And half at one another’s throats.
ABers love to hand on advice to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get on the site as early as you can,
And don’t have any dirty thoughts yourself
They fu*k you up, your Mod and Ed.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They suspend you for the faults you had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fu*ked up in their turn
By ABers in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were drunk or stern
And half at one another’s throats.
ABers love to hand on advice to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get on the site as early as you can,
And don’t have any dirty thoughts yourself
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1 to 19 of 19
