Ode On A Grecian Urn As fractured by Robert Schechter

They live on a vase, no words spoken,
each figure an image, a token.
        If beauty is truth
        there’s no end to youth
until this damn Grecian Urn’s broken.

La Belle Dame Sans Merci As fractured by Robert Schechter

La belle dame I kissed in the grot
seemed perfect at first. She was not.
        Our passion was deep
        but she lulled me to sleep
then left me alone on this spot.

The moral, I’m sure you’ll agree:
la belle dame was lacking merci,
        and no one should daily
        be loitering palely.
Oh learn from what happened to me!

Ozymandias As fractured by Gregory Dowling

You may think you’re supreme, with no peer,
carving statues and words to cause fear.
        You’ll feel pretty humbled
        when your statue has crumbled
and all that is left is your sneer.

Ozzie Redux As fractured by Robert Schechter

On a pedestal huge and Ionic
stood an emperor’s statue, iconic.
        His carved words said “I’m
        gonna last for all time,”
but the statue was broken. Ironic.