pre-encrypted

For many poems it would be unnecessary to put them in an encrypted file.

requisite equine

I put horses in poems, but I’ve never ridden one. They just seem like a good thing to put into literature.

—Sarah Manguso, 300 Arguments (Graywolf Press, 2017)

unnecessary / essential

Poetry exists at the poles of unnecessary language and essential language.

critical path through the poem

No unnecessary or inert nodes of words: Solve for and find the critical path through the poem.