Socialists at Play
May Morris, husband H. H. Sparling, Emery Walker, and George Bernard Shaw. Over a hundred years ago this month, Morris published his poem "Socialists at Play" in the July 1885 issue of The Commonweal. The Commonweal, edited by Morris, was the official newspaper of the Socialist League, and Morris published a good deal of original poetry and essays in its pages. While "Socialists at Play" is a little known, minor work of Morris's, it captures his spirit of fun and camaraderie even amidst his sincere and robust political commitment. What I like most about the poem is that it shows the high value Morris put on pleasure. Pleasure was, for Morris, a political goal as well as an end in and of itself. The poem begins, FRIENDS, we have met amidst our busy life To rest an hour from turmoil and from strife, To cast our care aside while song and verse Touches our hearts, and lulls the ancient curse. For Morris, literature's capacity to produce