Wednesday Read Aloud Poetry Blogging

I love the following poem by Sylvia Plath. The five syllable lines, coupled with strong assonance, establish a cadence as infectious as, well, the infiltration of mushrooms! I'm posting this as a "Read Aloud" poem today because I don't have the time at the moment to delve into a superficial, let alone detailed, analysis. I have studied a bit of Sylvia Plath, though, so I hope to offer insight in the future. However, if you're in the mood to exercise your vocal chords and follow the rhythm, I promise it'll be a delightful exercise!

Mushrooms

by Sylvia Plath

Overnight, very

Whitely, discreetly,

Very quietly

~

Our toes, our noses

Take hold on the loam,

Acquire the air.

~

Nobody sees us,

Stops us, betrays us;

The small grains make room.

~

Soft fists insist on

Heaving the needles,

The leafy bedding,

~

Even the paving.

Our hammers, our rams,

Earless and eyeless,

~

Perfectly voiceless,

Widen the crannies,

Shoulder through holes. We

~

Diet on water,

On crumbs of shadow,

Bland-mannered, asking

~

Little or nothing.

So many of us!

So many of us!

~

We are shelves, we are

Tables, we are meek,

We are edible,

~

Nudgers and shovers

In spite of ourselves.

Our kind multiplies:

~

We shall by morning

Inherit the earth.

Our foot's in the door.