Drummed their boots on the camion floor,
Hob-nailed boots on the camion floor.
Sergeants stiff,
Corporals sore.
Lieutenant thought of a Mestre whore —
Warm and soft and sleepy whore,
Cozy, warm and lovely whore;
Damned cold, bitter, rotten ride,
Winding road up the Grappa side.
Arditi on benches stiff and cold,
Pride of their country stiff and cold,
Bristly faces, dirty hides —
Infantry marches, Arditi rides.
Grey, cold, bitter, sullen ride —
To splintered pines on the Grappa side
At Asalone, where the truck-load died.
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He loves words as nobody else does. The aptest and nothing but that for which there is no substitute. And nothing but the most essential. That he didn't write poetry after the initial days of his career suggests he saw poetry only as a whetstone to sharpen his style. Then he stopped writing poetry and started turning prose into poetry.
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To me it seems so detailed as to be almost cinematographic. The marching rhythm, the personal thoughts, and the horrific ending. I, for my part, love the rhyme repetition. I feel it establishes the sense of sameness and tedium that must characterize the grueling preparation for a battle, especially the tedium of waiting.
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On Riparto D'Assalto
Such a march into battle. Could nearly hear the sound of boots, the change of arms. Those faces, grim, yet filled with pride. A batallion of men, marching, carrying arms, moving in steady pace to meet their end. And all preapred to go.
It hasn't changed all that much.
I have never read this by Hemingway before, and tonight, I am glad I did. -
Obdurate Poem
From guest Druhan (contact)
This poem has some phenominal ideas that will be remembered for the ages -
I am more a fan of Hemingways now than before, and I thought that was impossible.
-S -
Quite an excellent war poem
Easy to read, conveyed the dirty, ugliness of war with the leiutenants thouhts of carnsl things. Wouls deduct points for the rhyming where the same word is use to produce a rhyme. Floor, floor, whore, whore,cold cold. I believe Hemingway took part in the Italian Campaign of WW1 -
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He did!
And wrote the novel, "A Farewell to Arms" from that very experience.
Ron Wiseman from QLD Australia.
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Whew. All those rhymes makes my head spin. But they were done well, and I do recognize the poetic value of this piece. Though most of it goes over my poor head. Asalone, arditi, Mestre?
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