Poem of the Day: "It Is a Living Coral" by William Carlos Williams, Poet of the Month

The Songs of Eretz Poem of the Day for August 9, 2014 is "It Is a Living Coral" by William Carlos Williams, Poet of the Month.  The poem first appeared in The Arts in 1924.*  The text of the poem may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/237904.  An audio recording by the poet may be found here:  https://media.sas.upenn.edu/pennsound/authors/Williams-WC/07_Van-Nuys_11-16-50/Williams-WC_10_Living-Coral_Van-Nuys_11-16-50.mp3.  A brief biography of Williams and references may be found here:  http://eretzsongs.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-songs-of-eretz-poet-of-month-for.html.

In "It Is a Living Coral," Williams showcases his signature style in using his "variable foot."  The title serves as the first line of the poem.  "Living coral" refers to the ancient origin of the white marble used in the construction of the capitol, rock formed from the exoskeletons of coral http://geology.com/rocks/limestone.shtml.  The coral "lives" again as a symbol of the American system of government.

*http://books.google.com/books?id=P3Z_n3dMVEUC&pg=PA145&lpg=PA145&dq=it+is+a+living+coral+william+carlos+williams&source=bl&ots=dMIGfeDFqJ&sig=-TNF6X_uy3LVsUuYmOpyw8RgrAs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=6V_mU6LwJ4StyASRxYCgAg&ved=0CDkQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=it%20is%20a%20living%20coral%20william%20carlos%20williams&f=false