Last Act

• “Don’t be surprised it has taken so long / to show you these: / the gaps like missing teeth.“

  • gaps in communication
  • 5 years since his last collection
• “The silent mouthing O, / the stuck record of my tongue”

  • had a stammer when he was younger so he felt like he couldn’t express himself through speech but could through writing
• “the actor, bowing as himself / for the first time all night.“

  • Sheers is finally showing who he truly is through this poem
  • suggests how the collection will be about his identity
• “The drawing back of the curtain / to show the parts we’ve played.“

  • his relationship with this person has involved a lot of performance
• FORM

  The poem is free verse to show how he doesn’t want to be restrained anymore, only 1 stanza, it is before the contents page and it is in first person which creates a confessional and honest tone.
• The caesura suggests the speaker’s struggle to communicate.