There is a great amount of poetry in unconscious
Fastidiousness. Certain Ming
Products, imperial floor coverings of coach
Wheel yellow . . . .
“Critics and Connoisseurs, ” Others 3:I (July 1916), ll. 1-4.
Ming Dynasty Carpet
These opening lines concerning connoisseurs’ possessions that “are well enough in their way” set up Moore’s contrast with critics, portrayed as a self-defending swan and a frustrated ant. We may never know where Moore saw Ming rugs or yellow coach wheels but we can enjoy images that are probably similar to something she encountered.
Coach with Yellow Wheels
Marianne Moore: Poetry 
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