DDCPoetry

 Poem Found Here:   "Mistletoe" by Walter de la Mare I tend to have hit or miss readings for poems.  I'm warning whoever is reading this that this will will be a "miss" reading of a poem.  Why?  The poem hits for me different if a think of the variables relating to LGBT context. I usually stick to new criticism since I gain more as a poet from looking at poems in a technique sense.  Yes, this poem does echo a sonnet style with two septets that parallel each other, but with slight differences (the "shadow" having more of an ominous ungendered presence in the second septet).   I can also point out how the slight changes bring the gothic into the poem -- being touched by the unknown like the Christmas spirit or a past memory of lament. But for this case, this reminds me of one night stands and hooking up.  Maybe that's what the poem means, but it all depends how you view the shadow. Sitting under the mistletoe (Pale-green, fairy mistletoe),...