Writing on the Walls
Scott Michael Potter 1966 (Grand Rapids, MI)
Connections rushing everywhere…
Whereupon time crushes connections
we soothsayers smooth not sooth
Soothsaying soothes no truth we
desire not to hear, despite the message
messengers relate what fear we desire
lost to remain, whatever the cost
accosting aside, remaining lost
wherever these then reside - connections -
connecting whatever, however, wherever,
our keep as keepers of sooth
soothsaid enough shall keep our
truths written, as in stone
Stonehenge gives starlit truths
About this poem
Brief Exegesis Writing on the Walls This poem is about several ideas and concepts that run throughal, including form and message. The form follows some basic loose “rules of order” which are: first word or root word of each “pair of lines” and last word are switched from the first line to the second line. “Seething ole Dick limply run”, as a first line would require the second line to reverse that beginning-ending order. “Running Jane couldn’t foresee”. Thus message becomes messengers, sooth soothsaying, everywhere whereupon, cost accosting, connections connecting, sooth soothsaid, stone Stonehenge. However, what ought to be apparent is that the message ending a preceding line must begin the second line as a word as approximate as possible in beginning pronunciation such as messengers, while massages would not fit. EveryWHERE as an ending word can become WHEREupon or Wherever, etc., as long as it starts with the WEAR OR WARE OR WHERE pronunciation. The only derivation allowed is the usage of a “prefix” such as in ac-cost-ing so that it does not detract from the root pronunciation. Fore-sooth-ing would also fit for sooth preceding, but is generally not quite as fit as soothsaying. This is an example of practicing “PLAY” with writing poetry, as in the archetypal psychological usage of PLAY advanced by James Hillman and David Miller. I am not going to state the glaringly obvious messages, so as not to insult the reader. more »
Written on February 18, 2022
Submitted by ScottMPotter on May 06, 2022
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 21 sec read
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Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABCDEFGHBFCFIJ |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 480 |
Words | 72 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
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"Writing on the Walls" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 10 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/126080/writing-on-the-walls>.
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