Battle of the Masters

Emily Dickinson and Edgar Allan Poe

Were sparring in poetic verse

 

Said Poe, “My Muse is alcohol.”

Said Emily, “Mine’s the hearse.”

 

Em began the battle with:

“My life closed twice before…”

 

Poe countered with the chilling tale

Of his lost Lenore

 

“Because I could not stop for Death,

He kindly stopped for me…”

 

“The wind came out of the cloud by night…

Killing my Annabel Lee…”

 

They went on like this throughout the day

And all throughout the night

 

But neither brought the other down

With sorrows they’d recite

 

And there they may be standing, still

Swapping words of gloom

 

Neither poet taking notice

Of their own untimely doom 

Author's Note

Imagining what a meeting between these two Masters would be like...

Reviews

[Will]

Hot damn, you've outdone yourself, Rita! This is amazing, you've done a stupendous job combing the worse of these two poetic geniuses. I could literally see these two standing in a room as a storm rages outside, them exchanging dark verse after dark verse. I love it! I count you among these poetic geniuses, Rita, awesome job!

[Rita L. Sev]

Thank you so much, Will. I love that you imagined the storm raging outside; that's perfect! I have a very long way to go to be in the strata of these greats, but I appreciate your confidence in me!

[Will]

Keep writing gems like this, and you'll be there in no time!

[Shaun Payton]

Hmmm.."I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity." -Poe- Hehe Nice poem..Yeats versus T.S Eliot. E.E. Cummings versus Maya Angelou(Still I Rise, my fave poem by her) Dylan Thomas versus Charles Bukowski. Adelaide Ann Procter versus Jane Kenyon. Hemingway versus W.H Auden. Peter Porter versus Stephen Dunn. Dorianne Laux versus Frost..
Poetic waxings til only one poet stands.hehe(dont mind me ima silly) lol

Delightful imagining, i thought well penned Rita.

[Rita L. Sev]

These would all be wonderful word wars - e. e. cummings vs. Maya Angelou would be an interesting match... Thanks, Shaun!

[Shaun Payton]

:) most welcome Rita!

[quinfinn]

all he had to do to hush her was to tell her the tale of Usher....very clever!

[Rita L. Sev]

Aw, why didn't I think of that line? Thanks, Quinn!

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

First, these are two of my favorite poets. I've studied them extensively. I can totally picture Poe standing outside of Emily's gate (because she rarely let anyone into her home) and the two having a wordy banter such as this. I can also see it happening in the "afterlife", where we can choose whether this would be "hell" for them or "heaven". Heavy implications here...loved it.

[Rita L. Sev]

Thank you, Sarah! Yes, Emily would have done her reciting from her window - though I was picturing it outside the Pearly Gates - neither going in because they were so into their word war... I love introducing both of these greats to my middle school students. One boy this year asked if he could borrow my complete Dickinson collection over a weekend! :)

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

I love the concept as well! I can see her doing it from a window, behind lace curtains to obscure her face, and perhaps the two are, as you said, still having this little banter (bags packed) at Emily's house just before taking a ride up the glowing escalator to heaven.

[Samuel Dickens]

Pretty clever, Rita. Now if only Stephen King could've been there to referee.

[Rita L. Sev]

Aw! Why didn't I think of that? Thanks, Sam!

[FJ Davis]

An intriguing creation depicting two of my favorite poets.
This literary "rap-off" could hardly have been better portrayed.
Thanks, Rita, for arranging such a monumental event; your networking capabilities are, apparently, fierce!

[Rita L. Sev]

Ha! Oh, if only! Thanks, Frank!

[Sami Khalil]

This has to go in my faves for it is awesome. A very imaginative piece of poetry done by the combination of two masters and that dialogue was great...Bravo...:)

[Rita L. Sev]

Thank you, Sami! So glad you enjoyed it!

[Sami Khalil]

You are welcome...:)

[The Rock And Roll Cowbo..]

I am a big Poe fan so this was awesome.. when things are open to interpretation the winner depends on who is listening... another thing I take from this is how when we get caught up in petty things we get crushed by the things that really matter.

[Rita L. Sev]

Yes, that is true - both of these poets tortured themselves more than anything else - they buried themselves in their morose writings, rarely looking at the joy they might have had. Very sad, because they both have given so much to the literary world. Thanks, Dale!

[The Rock And Roll Cowboy(REBEL WITH A CAUSE)]

Have you seen the movie "The Raven", if not you should.

[Rita L. Sev]

Yes, I did - very good! I spend time each year at the Poe House here in Philly (one of the head Rangers there is a friend), and I come to know Edgar better each time...

[The Rock And Roll Cowboy(REBEL WITH A CAUSE)]

WOW, that is awesome.

[Rita L. Sev]

Yes, it's a great site - if ever visiting the City of Brotherly Love, this is a must-see!

[The Rock And Roll Cowboy(REBEL WITH A CAUSE)]

You know I live right above Philly for 8 years and never went. Don't know why.

[Marie]

When it came to gloom and doom they certainly were masters...should have been introduced to Sheila Klein...

[Rita L. Sev]

Yes, they were! Thanks, Marie!

[Rocans]

Entertaining read, I loved the concept. I always admired Emily Dickinson's morose poetry and Poe has been a favourite of mine from ever since. Fireworks would ensue if they met and colloborated perhaps they would write the world into destruction with their lines. :) Good write. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Rita L. Sev]

Thank you, Rocans! It would be wonderful to think about what they might write together!

[SyberRose]

What a party that would be ha...very creative Rita...Enjoyed as always...Rose:)

[Rita L. Sev]

Yes, I would love to be there! Thanks, Rose!