Practical Criticism - Advice From Your Examiner

The pavement
outside the pub.
Look at him,
sitting there.
On his own.
Scribbling poems full of tears and pining
for women he has loved.
The pint of Guinness
at his elbow,
and a wee tumbler
of Macallan,
the ten-year-old,
much superior to the thirty.
Puffing on his fags
(he knows they are Bad,
but he's hooked).

He's an MA candidate's cliche come true.
Of course he is - look -
misogynist
racist
ageist
healthist
homophobic.

It's easy to find
now I've told you
what to look for.
It's easy to bend it.
It's easy to cheapen it.
It's easy to get a
good mark
in your exam.
Don't reflect.
Regurgitate -
please.
Original thought
is so much more difficult
to mark.