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validus17 — Promethean Grotesque
Published: 2013-12-15 20:43:19 +0000 UTC; Views: 770; Favourites: 8; Downloads: 0
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Description
What is that great thing,that uncanny grotesque built
to the tip of the sky?
Is it a monument to the champion
chained before the dawn broke?
I remember carving the feet and the hands,
but it was you who made the face
—but why?
Why didn’t you speak in the dark?
Why didn’t you tell me when the light
went out, when the day was reversed
and the sky bruised black and blue?
Who doused the fire he gave us, that Light
of all lights? It illuminated the secrets
of our creation, the embers that warmed our hearths.
Was it the Light he gave us, or the Flame—
destruction, muzzle flashes and Molotovs?
Was he our just champion, or just
the trickster after all?
Was it a key he gave us, or a shovel
to dig our own mass grave in the stars?
Titanic liar—he knew what we would do.
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Comments: 3
I have been reading poetry for over four decades, and writing it for nearly two. And I can say, with sincere admiration, this is one of the finest poems I have read in all that time. This poem cannot be taken in on a first reading: it demands, and encourages, a second, a third, etc. You also use "grotesque" correctly. And, while the subject of the poem may be a grotesque, the poignant way the poem's bleak atmosphere is evoked it not grotesque, but exquisite. The impact of the last two lines sneaks up on the reader, and takes no quarter. This poem will stand the test of time; this poem should make you, as the poet, very proud. I wish I had written as well when I was your age.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
This, I think, is the highest praise I've ever received on any of my so-called poems. I thank you!
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My pleasure. The poem continues to haunt me.
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