The Concise Verse

Recent Episodes

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"The Half-Moon Westers Low, My Love" by A. E. Housman
March 1, 2026

"The Half-Moon Westers Low, My Love" by A. E. Housman

The half-moon westers low, my love, And the wind brings up the rain; And wide apart lie we, my love, And seas between the twain. I know not if it rains, my love, In the land where you do lie; And oh, so sound you sleep, my lo...
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"The Violet" by Jane Taylor
Feb. 22, 2026

"The Violet" by Jane Taylor

Down in a green and shady bed, A modest violet grew, Its stalk was bent, it hung its head, As if to hide from view. And yet it was a lovely flower, Its colours bright and fair; It might have graced a rosy bower, Instead of hi...
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"Green" by D. H. Lawrence
Feb. 15, 2026

"Green" by D. H. Lawrence

The dawn was apple-green, The sky was green wine held up in the sun, The moon was a golden petal between. She opened her eyes, and green They shone, clear like flowers undone, For the first time, now for the first time seen.
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"Dusk" by Angelina Weld Grimké
Feb. 8, 2026

"Dusk" by Angelina Weld Grimké

Twin stars through my purpling pane, The shriveling husk Of a yellowing moon on the wane - And the dusk.
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"A Poison Tree" by William Blake
Feb. 1, 2026

"A Poison Tree" by William Blake

I was angry with my friend: I told my wrath, my wrath did end. I was angry with my foe: I told it not, my wrath did grow. And I watered it in fears, Night and morning with my tears; And I sunned it with smiles, And with soft ...
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"At Midnight" by Frank Dempster Sherman
Jan. 25, 2026

"At Midnight" by Frank Dempster Sherman

See, yonder, the belfry tower That gleams in the moon’s pale light; Or is it a ghostly flower That dreams in the silent night? I listen and hear the chime Go quavering o’er the town, And out of this flower of Time Twelve peta...
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Recent Blog Posts

Love Across the Divide: A. E. Housman’s "The Half-Moon Westers Low, My Love"
March 1, 2026

Love Across the Divide: A. E. Housman’s "The Half-Moon Westers Low, M…

Best known for his cycle A Shropshire Lad, A. E. Housman was a master of capturing profound grief and longing with deceptive simplicity. "The Half-Moon Westers Low, My Love" was published in his 1922 collection, Last Poems. It serves as a haunting e…

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Lessons in Lowliness: Jane Taylor’s "The Violet"
Feb. 22, 2026

Lessons in Lowliness: Jane Taylor’s "The Violet"

Best known for penning the lyrics to "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," Jane Taylor was a prolific English poet and novelist whose work often focused on moral and spiritual themes for children. "The Violet," published in 1806 within the collection Rhy…

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The Dawn of Perception: D.H. Lawrence’s "Green"
Feb. 15, 2026

The Dawn of Perception: D.H. Lawrence’s "Green"

Published in 1917 as part of his collection Look! We Have Come Through!, "Green" captures D.H. Lawrence at his most lyrically vibrant. As a titan of 20th-century literature known for his exploration of human emotion and vitality, Lawrence uses this …

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