Parenting & Family Quote by Howard Nemerov

A poet admitting, with a wince of a grin, that some of his “children” are squat and ugly is really a poet admitting what most artists won’t: the work doesn’t always come out graceful, and the attachment doesn’t evaporate just because it’s misshapen. Nemerov’s line lands because it borrows the warm, sanctified language of parenthood and then punctures it with blunt, almost impolite candor. “Even” does the heavy lifting; it frames affection as an act of loyalty rather than aesthetic approval.

The specific intent is partly defensive and partly liberating. He’s granting himself permission to be prolific without pretending every poem is a swan. Calling poems “children” romanticizes the creative act, but “squat and ugly” yanks us back to the studio floor: drafts, compromises, lines that refuse to sing. The subtext is a rejection of the myth of effortless genius. If your worst pieces are still yours, you can stop curating your identity and start doing the actual work.

There’s also a sly ethical nudge. We live in a culture that encourages public sorting: favorites, rankings, hot takes, keepers versus embarrassments. Nemerov proposes an older, stubborn model of responsibility: you made it, you stand by it, you don’t disown it for failing to be pretty. Coming from a mid-century poet with a reputation for formal control and wit, the joke carries an extra edge: even the craftsman has clunkers, and he’s human enough to love them anyway.