Sara Teasdale sets the scene among lovers in Central Park, all of them sure their affection is limitless. Against that, the speaker places herself and the person beside her: two people who call themselves cynical and wise, keeping a careful distance and making small jokes to keep real feeling from showing. The speaker sees through the act. Her tone turns tender and lightly scolding as she asks why her “dearest and most foolish friend” insists on fighting love when the battle is already lost. The mood is wistful and warm—an affectionate frustration with someone too proud or afraid to admit what they feel. Spring, the season of openness and new life, makes their guardedness feel especially sad and unnecessary. In the end, it is less about romance than about the cost of hiding from it.
Spring — Summary
In Central Park the lovers sit, On every hilly path they stroll, Each thinks his love is infinite, And crowns his soul.
But we are cynical and wise, We walk a careful foot apart, You make a little joke that tries To hide your heart.
Give over, we have laughed enough; Oh dearest and most foolish friend, Why do you wage a war with love To lose your battle in the end?