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The Set-Up

Joseph Moncure March (1899 - 1977)

The Set-Up is the classic epic hard-edged poem of an aging African American boxer who is set up to take a fall in the ring against a younger white opponent. But when he finds out the fix is in, he decides he wants to go down swinging. The Set-Up was very loosely adapted into the a film of the same name in 1949 by director Robert Wise but bore little resemblance to the original narrative. Most disappointingly for poet March, the protagonist was changed from black to white, defeating the entire point of the story in March's eyes. Fortunately the original work still packs a punch all these years later. - Summary by Ben Tucker

Genre(s): Crime & Mystery Fiction, Epics

Language: English

Keyword(s): hard-boiled (21), noir (8), epic poem (7), boxing (5)