by Adam L. Dressler, Timothy Murphy -->

Knowing that the crime lay not
in foraging for extra food
(that was encouraged), but getting caught,
he hid the fox as best he could,
still wriggling, underneath his cloak,
turned to face the coming soldiers,
speaking only when they spoke
directly to him, keeping his shoulders
squared, back straight, and both eyes forward
respectfully, but free from fear,
in the proper Spartan manner,
and even as its sharp teeth tore
his belly open, did not appear
to feel the pain or that it mattered.

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Adam L. Dressler's poetry has appeared in Arion, Raritan, The Yale Review, and elsewhere.



This article originally appeared in The New Criterion, Volume 28 Number 9, on page 27
Copyright © 2023 The New Criterion | www.newcriterion.com
https://newcriterion.com/issues/2010/5/the-lacedaemonian-boy

Topics: Poetry

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