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1. Explain the titular allusion and the allusion to "the poet" in the first sentence of the story.

The story's title is "The Marry Month of May," which is a pun substituting "Marry" for "Merry" in a well-known poem title: that of "The Merry Merry Month of May," by Thomas Dekker. Dekker himself is likely the poet that O. Henry is referring to in the first sentence of the story, when he says that if a poet tells you that May is wonderful, you should punch him in the eye.

2. How does O. Henry characterize the month of May?

O. Henry says that May is a time when nature tries to trick human beings into inappropriate romantic relationships by appealing to their animal natures. He calls it a time of "mischief and madness" (332).

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