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Drapery

by Alli Martel

Dropping the d, that’s rapery,
another non-word, cromulent
(ever see that episode of The Simpsons?
A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man),
a connotation without significance.
Words are just that. Words in the habits
of nuns, black-veiled ladies, hands tied
to meanings, holy interpretations,
words begetting other words,
father to son, Adam to Seth, Homer
to Bart. Behind each letter, a sound,
the spelling-bee syllabics: Is this right?
Am I pronouncing this word correctly?
Is it really English? OED-approved?
;
the frabjous wish for eloquence, elocution,
with one’s neologisms (two definitions:
“a new word, usage, or expression,”
or “a meaningless word coined by a psychotic”).
Rapery too could have any number of meanings:
synonym of whorehouse, systematic breeding
ground for chickens, Internet chat-room,
nice-place-to-visit-don’t-wanna-live-there,
New York fetish nightclub, brand of tampons,
mis-translated subtitle of a foreign film,
typo provoking the forcible assault of a written work—

namely, a poem.

06/02/2008

Author's Note: This was my favorite poem that I wrote in college. A hearty thank-you goes out to the boy who made that stupid typo that day in our creative writing class!

Posted on 04/14/2011
Copyright © 2024 Alli Martel

Member Comments on this Poem
Posted by Alison McKenzie on 08/29/11 at 07:25 PM

I adore explorations of language, and this work does not disappoint at all! Love it!! Thank you for sharing it here!

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