Response to first half of City Eclogue

Ed Roberson's City Eclogue is strangely formatted throughout. Several lines are fragmented without any reason that I can deduce, aside from possibly symbolizing the fragmented structures of a city. Another reason might be that the lines are segregated from each other, as racial segregation is a theme in the poems. It may just be for the purpose of having the reader take more time reading and processing the message Ed is trying to convey. 

I found that everything up to Beauty's Standing was far too hard for me to understand. The message on government, and racial issues throughout Beauty's Standing was interesting. Specifically, I found the poem(s) on page 45 and 46 to be particularly interesting. The poem, I think, speaks of racial prejudice in the government. Strangely enough, page 45 is structured and punctuated properly. I'm not sure of the meaning behind the change in structure. 

My favorite bit of this poem is the line "despite the toll --- values = mere votes for their pull". The substitution of the word "poll" with "pull" seemed to go unnoticed. The values seem to refer to the prejudiced family values of the time, while the votes refer to prejudiced men remaining in power because of these "values".