Spoon River Anthology
'Spoon River Anthology' Summary
The first poem serves as an introduction:
"The Hill"
Where are Elmer, Herman, Bert, Tom and Charley,
The weak of will, the strong of arm, the clown, the boozer, the fighter?
All, all are sleeping on the hill.
One passed in a fever,
One was burned in a mine,
One was killed in a brawl,
One died in a jail,
One fell from a bridge toiling for children and wife—
All, all are sleeping, sleeping, sleeping on the hill.
Where are Ella, Kate, Mag, Lizzie and Edith,
The tender heart, the simple soul, the loud, the proud, the happy one?—
All, all are sleeping on the hill.
One died in shameful child-birth,
One of a thwarted love,
One at the hands of a brute in a brothel,
One of a broken pride, in the search for heart's desire;
One after life in far-away London and Paris
Was brought to her little space by Ella and Kate and Mag—
All, all are sleeping, sleeping, sleeping on the hill.
Where are Uncle Isaac and Aunt Emily,
And old Towny Kincaid and Sevigne Houghton,
And Major Walker who had talked
With venerable men of the revolution?—
All, all are sleeping on the hill.
They brought them dead sons from the war,
And daughters whom life had crushed,
And their children fatherless, crying—
All, all are sleeping, sleeping, sleeping on the hill.
Where is Old Fiddler Jones
Who played with life all his ninety years,
Braving the sleet with bared breast,
Drinking, rioting, thinking neither of wife nor kin,
Nor gold, nor love, nor heaven?
Lo! he babbles of the fish-frys of long ago,
Of the horse-races of long ago at Clary’s Grove,
Of what Abe Lincoln said
One time at Springfield.
Each following poem is an autobiographical epitaph of a dead citizen, delivered by the dead themselves. Characters include Tom Merritt, Amos Sibley, Carl Hamblin, Fiddler Jones and A.D. Blood. They speak about the sorts of things one might expect: Some recite their histories and turning points, others make observations of life from the outside, and petty ones complain of the treatment of their graves, while few tell how they really died. The subject of afterlife receives only the occasional brief mention, and even those seem to be contradictory. Speaking without reason to lie or fear the consequences, they construct a picture of life in their town that is shorn of façades. The interplay of various villagers — such as a bright and successful man crediting his parents for all he's accomplished, and an old woman weeping because he is secretly her illegitimate child — forms a gripping, if not pretty, whole.
Book Details
Author
Edgar Lee Masters
United States
Edgar Lee Masters was an American attorney, poet, biographer, and dramatist. He is the author of Spoon River Anthology, The New Star Chamber and Other Essays, Songs and Satires, The Great Valley, The...
More on Edgar Lee MastersDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books
Color by Countee Cullen
"Color" is a poem written by Countee Cullen, an African American poet of the Harlem Renaissance. The poem was published in Cullen's first volume of po...
Dymer by C. S. Lewis
The poem tells the story of Dymer, a young man on a quest to discover his true identity and purpose in life. It is a deeply philosophical work that ex...
Poems of Marianne Moore by Marianne Moore
In 1921, American poet H.D. collected and published a selection of previously published poems by Marianne Moore. Although this angered Moore, as it wa...
Epilogue by Bliss Carman
In the final volume of his acclaimed Songs of the Sea Children, Bliss Carman delivers a poignant and introspective collection of poems that reflect on...
Reedy River by Henry Lawson
This Fortnightly Poem is taken from Verses Popular and Humorous (pub 1900). This was the second collection of poems by Australian poet Henry Lawson.
Bill & Doreen's Married Life by C. J. Dennis
"Bill and Doreen's Married Life" is a hilarious and heartwarming account of the ups and downs of married life. Bill and Doreen are a young couple who...
Selected Poems of Robert Frost by Robert Frost
Robert Frost, who lived from March 26, 1874 to January 29, 1963, was a winner of 4 Pulitzer prizes and one of America’s best loved poets. This selecti...
The Cheery Way, a Bit of Verse for Every Day - June by John Kendrick Bangs
Start your day off with a smile with a poem from The Cheery Way, a Bit of Verse for Every Day - June by John Kendrick Bangs. This delightful collecti...
Morning Work by D. H. Lawrence
This Weekly poem is taken from Love Poems and Others by D. H. Lawrence.
Lines on a New-Born Infant by Susanna Moodie
The poem is a tribute to the joys and wonders of childbirth, depicting the new life as a symbol of hope and promise for the future. Susanna Moodie wa...
Reviews for Spoon River Anthology
No reviews posted or approved, yet...