The Waste Land: Five Limericks
I
In April one seldom feels cheerful;
Dry stones, sun and dust make me fearful;
Clairvoyantes distress me,
Commuters depress me--
Met Stetson and gave him an earful.
II
She sat on a mighty fine chair,
Sparks flew as she tidied her hair;
She asks many questions,
I make few suggestions--
Bad as Albert and Lil--what a pair!
III
The Thames runs, bones rattle, rats creep;
Tiresias fancies a peep--
A typist is laid,
A record is played--
Wei la la. After this it gets deep.
IV
A Phoenician named Phlebas forgot
About birds and his business--the lot,
Which is no surprise,
Since he'd met his demise
And been left in the ocean to rot.
V
No water. Dry rocks and dry throats,
Then thunder, a shower of quotes
From the Sanskrit and Dante.
Da. Damyata. Shantih.
I hope you'll make sense of the notes.
-- Wendy Cope
Oh, I love this. Not everyone can pull these off, but this one is delightful, Wendy.
Posted by: Cindy Hochman | February 24, 2024 at 08:22 AM
This is brilliant!
Posted by: Simon Schuchat | February 24, 2024 at 08:37 AM
Bravo! It takes a Wendy! This one's a keeper.
Posted by: Mary Gilliland | February 24, 2024 at 08:44 AM
What a treat!
Posted by: Mona Houghton | February 24, 2024 at 09:51 AM
The source of this wonderfully witty poem by Wendy Cope is MAKING COCOA FOR KINGSLEY AMIS, published in 1986 by Faber and Faber Ltd. That book was autographed by Wendy Cope for me in June 2010 at a poetry conference in West Chester University, Pa. The poem is entitled "Waste Land Limericks" in that book. A measure of Wendy Cope's kindness and encouragement is evident in the time she graciously took there to autograph four of her books for me. The other three were SERIOUS CONCERNS (1992), IF I DON'T KNOW (2001), and TWO CURES FOR LOVE (2008). I heartily recommend all four books to any lover of penetrating wit and uncanny discernment in verse. Consider the last poem in her book MAKING COCOA FOR KINGSLEY AMIS:
"Making Cocoa for Kingsley Amis"
It was a dream I had last week
And some kind of record seemed vital.
I knew it wouldn't be much of a poem
But I love the title.
What a treat! What a poet!
Posted by: Dr. Earle Hitchner | February 24, 2024 at 10:02 AM
Truly enjoyable. One can imagine this starting a trend of casting some of poetry's Big Production Numbers in limerick mode, with for starters Lycidas, The Rape of the Lock and Song of Myself.
Posted by: ALAN WEARNE | February 24, 2024 at 07:20 PM