Poems and Portraits

CHRISTOPHER LA FARGE is unusual among contemporary poets in possessing a strong dramatic sense. He conceives abstract topics in terms of action and movement, bones and blood: ‘In the time of their going,’ a reluctant farewell to peace and freedom, is a good example of this. He has command, too, of an effortless ironic rhythm, which flows with deceptive smoothness to a challenging satiric conclusion — as in ‘Memorial Day 1940’ or ‘February 22, 1940.’ The poems include some graceful descriptive verse, some direct personal lyrics, and a series of portraits which show his capacity for stripped concentration of word and image: —

Your right’s complete
In partnership
To count each chip
Lest friends may cheat.