# The King of Bores explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

The narrator laments the abundance of bores in the world, describing them as incessant and overwhelming, like funeral pageants or a droning drum. He singles out one supreme tormentor, 'Prince Fiddlefaddle, Duc de Feefawfum,' who intrudes upon his private amorous verses, claims to know the lady addressed, and calls him a 'sly dog.' The narrator wishes this bore would understand the sonnet's true application.

## Themes in this chapter

### Art and Criticism

The narrator's private poetic creation is invaded and misinterpreted by a bore, highlighting the tension between artistic expression and vulgar criticism.

### Deception and Self-Deception

The bore's claim to know the lady of the verses may be a self-deceptive or deceptive assertion, and the narrator's wish for the bore to understand the sonnet's 'application' suggests hidden meaning.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown

The narrator who writes amorous verses and is tormented by a bore.

## Key lines

> He the johndonkey is who, when I pen Amorous verses in an idle mood To nobody, or of her, reads them through And, smirking, says he knows the lady; then Calls me sly dog.

He is the jackass who, when I write love poems casually to no one in particular or about a woman, reads them completely and with a smirk claims to know the woman, then calls me a sly dog.

_Describes the bore's intrusive and presumptuous behavior._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters/the-king-of-bores
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters