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They fuck you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do. They fill you with the faults they had And add some extra, just for you. -Philip Lark
by thenerdhead 3y ago
They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
-Philip Larkin, This Be The Verse
- throwawaylifez 3y agoThey tuck you up, your Mum and Dad. They read you Peter Rabbit, too. They give you all the treats they had And add some extra, just for you. They were tucked up when they were small, (Pink perfume, blue tobacco-smoke), By those whose kiss healed any fall, Whose laughter doubled any joke. Man hands on happiness to man. It deepens like a coastal shelf. So love your parents all you can And have some cheerful kids yourself. - Adrian Mitchell
- revolvingocelot 3y agoGiven the sibling comment, I feel the parent needs some explanation, and the full poem! Larkin's poem came first, then the one in the sibling comment. *** They fuck you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do. They fill you with the faults they had And add some extra, just for you. But they were fucked up in their turn By fools in old-style hats and coats, Who half the time were soppy-stern And half at one another’s throats. Man hands on misery to man. It deepens like a coastal shelf. Get out as early as you can, And don’t have any kids yourself. [0] [0] https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48419/this-be-the-verse https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48419/this-be-the-ver...
- pengaru 3y agoI first heard this poem back in the late 90s in the form of an Anne Clark MP3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asVf8Zpw1tA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asVf8Zpw1tA
- ilkke 3y agoThanks for sharing. It took me way too long to 'get out' but I instinctively figured out I'm never having kids years before understanding why.