Summary

In the first stanza, the speaker states that "the farm boys" will eventually come across a newborn two-headed calf, which they call a "freak of nature" (1-2). Due to the calf's unusual appearance, the boys will wrap his body in newspaper and take him to be displayed at a local museum.

In the second and final stanza, the speaker describes the peaceful night the calf has before the farm boys discover him. It is a "perfect / summer evening," and the calf is with his mother in the north field (5-6). The moon rises over the orchard, and wind blows in the grass. When the calf looks up at the sky, his two heads together see twice the amount of stars that a one-headed being would see.

Analysis

In her poem "The Two-Headed Calf," Laura Gilpin employs beautiful and unexpected imagery in order to encourage...