The Buckley School's founder believed all public speakers should hone their presentation skills by reading poetry out loud. We keep that worthwhile practice alive by including a poem in our magazine each month for you to read aloud. Above, a drawing of Edward Lear made by Wilhelm Marstrand when Lear was around 28 years old.
A painter and poet, Edward Lear may be known to you even if you do not know his name. Lear was the author of many humorous poems, including the one many children hear or recite, "The Owl and the Pussycat." He's also considered the creator of the modern limerick form.
An Italian landscape painted by Lear
Born in 1812, Lear was left to fend for himself at an early age. His father was sent to debtor's prison when Lear was just 13, forcing him to earn a living—which he did by painting. He began his career as a professional artist at age 15 and by age 20 was hired by the London Zoological Society to illustrate birds. He began composing verse for children when he was in his early 30s.
From a letter to Archdeacon Bevan from Edward Lear, January 1879
Writing about Lear and his penchant for irreverence, poets.org says:
Many critics view Lear's devotion to the ridiculous as a method for dealing with or undermining the all-pervasive orderliness and industriousness of Victorian society. Regardless of impetus, the humor of Lear's poems has proved irrefutably timeless.
Below, three limericks from Lear, perfect vehicles for working on a speaker’s comic timing as well as sharpening diction and enunciation:
Book of Nonsense, 1, 10 & 12
by Edward Lear
1.
There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, "It is just as I feared!--
Two Owls and a Hen,
Four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard!"
10.
There was an Old Man in a tree,
Who was horribly bored by a Bee;
When they said, "Does it buzz?"
He replied, "Yes, it does!
"It's a regular brute of a Bee!"
12.
There was a Young Lady whose chin,
Resembled the point of a pin:
So she had it made sharp,
And purchased a harp,
And played several tunes with her chin.
