xkcd #3209: Plums

Title text:

My icebox plum trap easily captured William Carlos Williams. It took much less work than the infinite looping network of diverging paths I had to build in that yellow wood to ensnare Robert Frost.

Transcript:

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Source: https://xkcd.com/3209/

explainxkcd for #3209

My icebox plum trap easily captured William Carlos Williams. It took much less work than the infinite looping network of diverging paths I had to build in that yellow wood to ensnare Robert Frost.
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[–] 12 points 8 months ago* (5 children)

It is a poem because poems are structured in lines rather than sentences. For example, this paragraph is prose.

.

.

.

This is a poem

Because poems are made of lines

Rather than sentences.

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  • [–] 5 points 8 months ago (4 children)

    It’s very easy
    Anyone can do this now
    Even you and me

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  • [–] 4 points 8 months ago (2 children)

    Precisely!

    Of course, saying anything can be poetry is like saying anything can be music - while it is true, tastes vary and not everything will seem like "good poetry" to everyone. And that's ok!

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  • [–] 6 points 8 months ago (1 child)

    I think people struggle with it because when you're a little kid poetry is taught as having to rhyme and have a particular format. Then you get older and run into shit like this.

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