“A limerick packs laughs anatomical
Into space that is economical.
The best ones I’ve seen
So seldom are clean
And the clean ones so seldom are comical.”
- James Silverton, limerick connoisseur
In 1978, a local limerick contest was held. The judge was none other than Isaac Asimov (1920–1992), who segued from biochemistry professor to prolific writer (over 500 books written and edited). He was perhaps best known for his sci-fi work.
Of 12,000 entries, the limerick Asimov judged best was this:
“The bustard’s an exquisite fowl
With minimal reason to growl.
He escapes what would be
Illegitimacy
By grace of a fortunate vowel.”
I admit that, when I read this, I didn’t know what a bustard was. In fact, I’d never even heard of it.
But I did like the limerick. The appeal of a single polysyllabic word in line 4 seemed undeniable.
The limerick is a unique form of poetry defined thusly:
“A humorous, frequently bawdy, verse of 3 long and 2 short lines, rhyming pattern aabba, popularized by Edward Lear.”
