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31 October 2017

The NS Poem: Sitting Tight (Martin Luther hides out in Wartburg Castle)

A new poem by Siriol Troup.

By Siriol Troup

So this is what reformation looks like: habits
dropped, mouthpiece barbed,
flesh made credible by lust-inducing hose.

Christ, no; just a man screwed up by constipation,
Worms on the brain
as he squats where only angels dare,

dreaming of sex, fame, stout, fresh roughage,
hurling his inkpot at the devil,
straining, straining to get something out.

31 October marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s “Ninety-five Theses”. Siriol Troup’s third collection of poems, “No Names Have Been Changed”, is published by Shearsman. 

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This article appears in the 25 Oct 2017 issue of the New Statesman, Poor Britannia