Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, HEREDITY, by WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

HEREDITY, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: That swollen paunch you are doomed to bear
Last Line: And yet, away, you charnel thing!
Alternate Author Name(s): Howells, W. D.
Subject(s): Ancestors & Ancestry; Character; Evil; Heritage; Heredity


That swollen paunch you are doomed to bear
Your gluttonous grandsire used to wear;
That tongue, at once so light and dull,
Wagged in your grandam's empty skull;
The leering of the sensual eye
Your father, when he came to die,
Left yours alone; and that cheap flirt,
Your mother, gave you from the dirt
The simper which she used upon
So many men ere he was won.

Your vanity and greed and lust
Are each your portion from the dust
Of those that died, and from the tomb
Made you what you must needs become.
I do not hold you aught to blame
For sin at second hand, and shame:
Evil could but from evil spring;
And yet, away, you charnel thing!





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