Free verse is poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular meter—poetry that is literally free of traditional conventions and restrictions. Its popularity is often traced back to nineteenth-century French poets such as Arthur Rimbaud and Jules Laforgue but is easily recognizable in the works of twentieth-century American poets such as William Carlos Williams, Carl Sandburg, and Marianne Moore. By the end of the twentieth century, free verse was the most common form of poetry being written. But the most important thing to keep in mind about free verse is that the style does not mean that a poem is completely without distinctive cadence, form, or structural complexity. “Curse” is an apt example of just how structured a free verse poem can be.

Bidart is noted for his unusual punctuation, capitalization, and word spacing—all to draw special attention to a...