Introductory explanation <br /> <br />Twice this week I have been asked 'Why don't boys carry umbrellas? ' Here is an attempt (several attempts, actually) to answer the question. Being male myself I think I am qualified to try to answer the question; I will attempt the onerous task of trying to answer for every boy who does not carry an umbrella, and there are very few boys who do. <br /> I stumbled across a poem of this type earlier today, in a book called 'Considering Poetry'; the poem in question was called 'Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackboard'; I have just found it on the site; it is by Wallace Stevens. That was the inspiration for the style; but the poem has been floating around my consciousness since I was asked the question this morning (for the second time in three days) , and that was the inspiration for the poem itself. <br /> <br />Why Don't Boys Carry Umbrellas? <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />Because we don't mind getting wet. <br /> <br />II <br /> <br />Because we can't be bothered to obtain an umbrella even if we do mind getting wet. <br /> <br />III <br /> <br />Because girls carry umbrellas. <br /> <br />IV <br /> <br />Because it doesn't occur to us that we might need an umbrella even though we know it's going to rain. <br /> <br />V <br /> <br />Because it's one more thing for us to think about and if we think too much our brains will explode. <br /> <br />VI <br /> <br />Because we can't multitask – we can't walk and carry an umbrella at the same time (or won't) . <br /> <br />VII <br /> <br />Because we don't think that if it's raining and we walk through the rain we're going to get wet. <br /> <br />VIII <br /> <br />Because boys will be boys. <br /> <br />IX <br /> <br />But most of all, we don't carry umbrellas because we don't mind getting wet. <br /> <br />(Wednesday,2nd November,2005.)<br /><br />David Mitchell<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/why-don-t-boys-carry-umbrellas/
