since feeling is first

by E. E. Cummings

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Student Question

How can "since feeling is first" by e. e. cummings be divided into complete thought sentences?

Quick answer:

"Since feeling is first" by e. e. cummings can be divided into complete thought sentences as follows: 1) Since feeling is first, who pays attention to the syntax of things will never wholly kiss you. 2) Wholly to be a fool while Spring is in the world. 3) My blood approves, and kisses are a better fate than wisdom. 4) Lady, I swear by all flowers. 5) Don't cry—the best gesture of my brain is less than your eyelids' flutter, which says we are for each other. 6) Then laugh, leaning back in my arms. 7) For life’s not a paragraph and death, I think, is no parenthesis.

Expert Answers

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One of the challenges with the poetry of e. e. cummings is to achieve precisely what you have mentioned - it is difficult to break it down into logical sentence structure. Obviously you might come up with some different answers but here is a suggestion to get you started:

Since feeling is first who pays any attention to teh syntax of things will never wholly kiss you.

Wholly to be a fool whilst Sprin is in the world.

My blood approves, and kisses are a beter fate than wisdom.

Lady I swear by all flowers.

Don't cry - the best gesture of my brain is less that your eyelids' flutter which says we are for each other.

Then laugh, leaning back in my arms.

For life's not a paragraph and death I think is no paranthesis.

Hope this helps!

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