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Free Man

Text of Poem

Hans Karen and debt were old friends until 1932
when he and his banker had insomnia
for the same reason.
Both now sleep sound
for no one will trust Hans
and since he did not shoot himself
he lives out mild unharassed days
and dreamless nights.
First Line
Hans Karen and debt were old friends until 1932
Original Pub Location
The Sun at Noon
Original Publication Date
1943
Original Citation
The Sun at Noon. Muscatine, Iowa: The Prairie Press, 1943. 25.
Republication
North American Review (1974) 31.
Complete Poems
49
Hearst Collections
The Sun at Noon 25, Landmark and other Poems 16.
Word Count
46
Poetic Form
open
Bibliographic Notes

Protagonist named Hans Karen
Themes
debt
money
Twitter Quote
Hans Karen and debt were old friends until 1932 / when he and his banker had insomnia / for the same reason.