Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE ADVENTURE, by ROBERT RANKE GRAVES



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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE ADVENTURE, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: To-day I killed a tiger near my shack
Last Line: With clotted blood.
Subject(s): Animals; Tigers; World War I; First World War


(Suggested by the claim of a machine-gun team to have annihilated
an enemy wire party: no bodies were found however)


To-day I killed a tiger near my shack
Among the trees: at least, it must have been,
Because his hide was yellow, striped with black,
And his eyes were green.

I crept up close and slung a pointed stone
With all my might: I must have hit his head,
For there he died without a twitch or groan,
And he lay there dead.

I expect that he'd escaped from a Wild Beast Show
By pulling down his cage with an angry tear;
He'd killed and wounded all the people -- so
He was hiding there.

I brought my brother up as quick as I could
But there was nothing left when he did come:
The tiger's mate was watching in the wood
And she's dragged him home.

But, anyhow, I killed him by the shack,
'Cause -- listen! -- when we hunted in the wood
My brother found my pointed stone all black
With clotted blood.




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