Is poetry a written form
or is it meant to be read
aloud if only by
the voice in your head
Concrete poems would convey
nothing of their shape by recitation
whilst Limericks demand
reading aloud their ribald rhymes
no hesitation
and if as poet you hope for
someone else to do the honours
consider giving a little guidance
in the matter of delivery
a comma gives the slightest pause
especially midline for line breaks
require not the little tadpole
or even a period’s emphatic end
I like a space hyphen space
to indicate a slightly Longer pause or
see line three for a positive gap
a dramatic pause
a pause for effect
In Ulysses
James Joyce
gives us a manifesto
for stream of consciousness
but Virginia Woolf in Mrs Dalloway
reads so much easier
the stream guided with a
modicum of punctuation
Unlike composers of music
we poets are not tyrants
issuing cryptic instructions
in superscript
for volume and speed
forte and piano
andante and lente
leaving limited room for
conductors’ interpretation
we poets trust our readers
to read and rehearse
to infuse the best intonation
The semicolon has no place
in poetry or fiction
that tadpole crowned with a dot
and do all questions
require a question mark
I’ll let you be the judge
And so to round off poems
stories and comments
my addiction is to the ellipsis
whose merits I have debated with
tonight’s muse and I think
she is persuaded that
it means so much more than
duh duh duh
for me the ellipsis
leaves a little open
forgoes finality
invites contemplation
if not response
and so I give you
an imaginary ellipsis
© Andrew Wilson, 2026
Over at dVerse Poets Pub, Melissa Lemay in Uncategorized (Poetics), invites us to write without punctuation…
“The semicolon has no place in poetry” – I’ve had this commented on my poetry before and to which I say, ‘Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do!’
I was also thinking along the same lines as your thoughts in your first stanza while reading some of the other poems here, and writing my own. For example, the use of enjambment when poems are read aloud.
I also love a …
Great write Andrew 👏 I really like this.
Outside of business documents and reports, I find I don’t know why I would use a semi-colon but far chacun a son gout – far be it from me to proscribe your usage, Shaun, and thanks for the comment…
a brilliant and dense inquisition Andrew and your love for the ellipsis feels like so many kisses – goodbye or perhaps hello but definitely three of them!
Yes, its the ambiguity I like, Lara…
If we go to the gallery, where would a good place for me to pick you up, public transportwise?
A thorough inquisition of punctuation, Andrew. It’s true that ‘concrete poems would convey nothing of their shape by recitation’, which could not happen in prose – stream of consciousness is not easy to read aloud. However, I do like a semicolon in the right place. One poet who distresses me with her use of punctuation is Emily Dickinson.
What is it you don’t like about Emily Dickinson, Kim? Still not convinced about the semi-colon…
I like how you end the poem with “An imaginary semicolon…”
It demands the reader to question and to contemplate the use (or need) for all the other punctuation..well crafted and expertly delievered! 🩵
Thank you so much Cara. You will see that the ellipsis is my signature…
Very nicely done, Andrew! I liked this summary of your statement:
we poets trust our readers
to read and rehearse
to infuse the best intonation
Particularly when reading to children, the emotional intonation is what they love and demand repeats of – do you know Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf by Roald Dahl – it contains the immortal lines:
The small girl smiles. One eyelid flickers.
She whips a pistol from her knickers.
She aims it at the creature’s head
And bang bang bang, she shoots him dead.
Such fun to read to children, Dwight…
A long time back Jane and had a conversation that long ago before the written word, poems were sung and that is why rhyme and rhythm are of great importance for the words to flow. I am old school and I love using punctuation in my poems. I also use semi colon quite often.😄
This is such a brilliant write, Andrew! I love your inquisition of punctuation.
Insightfully explored. I agree with many of your musings!
Thanks, Jennifer, I seem to have stirred something up with my assertion about the semi-colon – thank goodness I didn’t raise the issue of the Oxford Comma, lol (I am for it)…
Love how you took punctuation and upended it ~~ quite beautifully and with humour as well. Cheers!
Thanks, Helen, we need plenty of humour at the present time…
Let us speak of punctuation without actually using it. Brilliant, Andrew!
Thanks, Sara, in fact I don’t use a lot of punctuation much of the time when wtriting poems so it wasn’t hard…
I often use the semi-colon as a separator and maybe excuse, to continue my meandering. I enjoyed this short dissertation on punctuation.
Each to their own, I just never formed the habit of using semi-colons except in business documents. Glad you enjoyed it Cai and thanks for commenting…
Here I am two months later. I love your poem about punctuation that has no punctuation, Andrew. And yes, I think you’ve swayed me regarding my ellipsis views.
Better late than never…
Besides – I know you’ve had a lot going on Fiancee Girl 🤗