A tyrant does not fear the critic’s pen,
But rather drunken words of poets, caught
By hungry ears—a rhythmic viral spin
That leaps to mind with menace fraught.
(It takes a little just to rhyme the truth—
From there, you doubt your words and turn to drink,
Until your words out-tumble, blunt, uncouth;
In unassuming minds they spread). We think
That poets deal in piddling privacies
Of loves and hates, but not the goods of states,
Ignoring all the petty piracies
That liquored lyric oft perpetuates:
It may improve a humble government
To study what the bards who drank have meant.
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2 comments:
This is one half of my presentation at the last meeting. The other half is on its way to a certain publication on a (USPS) wing and a prayer.
Neo -
Very amusing. Great idea. I'm not sure I see the link to homebrew, however. I also noticed what seemed to me a slight incongruancy between the opening line which mentions "A tyrant..." and the penultimate line calling upon "a humble government..." It occured to me that along with a slight inconsistency of imagery there is a parallel inconsistency in logic. You rightly state that it is the tyrant who fears the poet. History speaks volumes on the paranoia of tyrants. A humble government, on the other hand, has little to fear from poets. And poets have little interest in writing about them.
We all, I might add, have much to gain by the raising of the wrist now and again, preferably in good company, whether that be of the living flesh-bearing kind or the yellowing, dog-eared variety.
Best of luck with the submission (to the periodical that is, not to your wife.)
Antiquus
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