Friday, November 7, 2008

Obama Needs to Watch His Line Breaks

I mean, breaking on "the" in the 9th line is a little weak.

Otherwise, really, this ain't bad for a collegiate poem, even if it does sound like Obama might have been tripping—or feeling negative about a recent spelunking experience—when he wrote it.

(Underground apes eating figs?)


Underground

Under water grottos, caverns
Filled with apes
That eat figs.
Stepping on the figs
That the apes
Eat, they crunch.
The apes howl, bare
Their fangs, dance,
Tumble in the
Rushing water,
Musty, wet pelts
Glistening in the blue.

Another, perhaps more personally revealing, poem by the President-elect here.

Our new president wrote poetry! It's a good thing this didn't come out before the election. it could have scared off middle America—even though Lincoln himself was known to scribble an iamb or two.

Still giddy ...

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

people who write any poetry at all generally appreciate great poetry. i read that obama loves emerson (probably the essays, which i too prefer to his poetry). at any rate, this is the first times politics has ever given me joy.
-- field-dressed and lovin it

... i do think there was real poetry is palin's couric interview though

Anonymous said...

Just one thing -- I don't like "apes / that eat figs"; I prefer "apes / who eat figs."

I bet Palin's favorite poet is Joyce Kilmer!

M. C. Allan (Carrie, to most) said...

Joyce Kilmer is the poet of "real America" for sure, but I'm not sure how much palin appreciates the trees? :)

Maggie May said...

this only affirms my idea of Obama as the bomb, the shitznit, the man, the king, you know, 'that one.'

M. C. Allan (Carrie, to most) said...

mm: totally! and he READS poetry, too. insert happy dance here ...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/barackobama/article3401542.ece

M. C. Allan (Carrie, to most) said...

for some reason, it's not displaying the link correctly ... but, go to the Telegraph's site and search Obama and Walcott and you'll find the little story :)