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Sunday 27 November 2011

A Walk on the Wild Side

A walk in response to dVerse Poets' invitation to write on the general theme of Wildness. I cannot do justice to their post, which in my opinion is one of the great posts, a joy to read in its own right. Go see if you agree.

Where is the verse
that comes from the wild,
emotion untrammelled
by reason's control?

Where is the paint
to colour the landscape
that rivers of feeling
have carved through the brain?

Where is the song
like a tropical storm
exploding on beaches,
unleashed on the ears?

Where are the thoughts
in verse or in prose
that undermine everything
everyone knows?

Where are the barbarous
artists untamed
lost on the waves
that arouse, not explain?

Where is the dance
and the whirl of the dancer
blurred by the fury
of motion unchecked?

Where are the rhythms
to flame the tame brain
and torch all the body parts
over again?

Where is the beat,
deep, resounding , a chorus,
a chorus of hearts,
of hearts in extremis?

Where are the purples
besmirching the whites,
the leaps out of heaven
that leave you in hell?

Where are the beasts
to roam through our culture
to trample the brush
and savage the lions?

the leftover mindsets
our attics begrime,
the fossils and cliches -
all threats in their time?

30 comments:

Claudia said...

i like this david..i have been quite a wild teenager and it has its price to be and to act wild..so i've settled and fought this wildness like an enemy cause i feel it has power to destroy.. but i think the key is to balance it..which is probably one of the most difficult things i can think of.. so i'm leaving here with plenty to think about..thank you..smiles

Unknown said...

wildness is a necessity ..it allows us to evolve and explore otherwise ..the world would remain dull boring and restraining it just needs direction ...loved this thank you x

Brian Miller said...

i like the questioning approach allowing us to make our own judgements...as you will see in reading mine i think we swing the pendulum from our youth far too far the other direction....balance i do think is key

Brendan said...

Insert lost (or tossed) wilderness (here.) You held onto the beast's tail admirably and surprised us by letting us know that thing of darkness is your own. - Brendan

Anonymous said...

I love writing that asks questions...because they draw the reader into thinking for themselves. Socratic questioning is a lost art.

haricot said...

The refrain makes me feel easier, though to depict without explanation is never easy,I'm sure.

Crafty Green Poet said...

I like the rhythms in this poem. Wildness is so vital to life yet contemporary culture is scared of it,

James Rainsford said...

Well constructed and full of perceptive questions. Enjoyed it immensely.

Daydreamertoo said...

Even though we are supposedly 'civilised' mankind is still only one small step away from barbaric deeds, even now. we see it in the Middle east and what they do to their own people without even thinking about it.
I agree we need a bit of wild side to stretch and grow but, we've lost our compassion and kindness now as our technology isolates us more and more from reality and into virtual worlds that have no emotions.
We only have to look at the plight of the threatened extinction of vast amounts and species of creatures to see what we have done.
Very nice write.

Scarlet said...

I love the ending questions at each verse Dave. You captured the arts challenge and turmoil from music to dance to writing. A pleasure to read you always ~

Anonymous said...

The questioning conveys this deep longing, and are done with such a deep beat--they are both like questions and a chant. Very lovely. K.

Anonymous said...

... I'm left with a sense of vanishing... interesting

The Orange Tree said...

beautiful imaginations.

Laurie Kolp said...

Pensive and reflective in a thought-provoking presentation... I enjoyed this, Dave!

hedgewitch said...

This has great acceleration and push, from a mild opening to a stark finish--the question format, easily abused, was just right and made for consistent engagement. Excellent poem, with some questions that may not even have answers, but have to be asked.

Cathy Feaster said...

awesome questions...and very thought inspiring! My favorite stanza: "Where are the barbarous
artists untamed
lost on the waves
that arouse, not explain?"

Luke Prater said...

Many arresting questions raised here, dave. And words used - 'untrammelled', for one. Intriguing

Tommaso Gervasutti said...

a delight to read this and the title struck at once...the Lou Reed's masterpiece I have loved for ages...

Old Kitty said...

Oh wow. Your strongest poem so far in my most humble opinion (and I know nothing about poetry!!!) but this has rhythm - this has a beat - I like that it flows musically!! Yay - well done you!!! Take care
x

Windsmoke. said...

Like Tommaso i thought of the Lou Reed song and agree its a masterpiece. Your poem is very rhythmic and powerful, its gotta be one of your best :-).

Glenn Buttkus said...

Your poem is like a stroll
down a swath of our lives,
bitch-slapping us back into
lesson, pulling the scabs off
our lethargy, redefining the
system's five year plan.
I like the lines:
/the whirl of the dancer/
blurred by the fury/ of motion
unchecked.

Mark Kerstetter said...

Dave, I'm glad you enjoyed the post and took us into your wild. That final question resonates. When it comes to the arts and philosophy, people seem to get used to anything and the stuff loses its punch. Then again there are always those who can see and find ways to make the same old seem new.

ds said...

Oh, my, yes. This is wonderful, haunting and true. Leftover mindsets begriming our attics. Everything was once new, everything was once a "threat." Have we become too complacent? Where are...
Thank you.

Dulcina said...

Hi Dave.
I have just read the post in dVerse Poets' about Wildness, a great post, indeed; I've left a comment (waiting for moderation).
Lou Reed's song "Walk on the wild side" is one of my favs, but nothing to do with your lines, as far as I know.
You have raised wise questions about where wild verse, paint, song, thoughts in poetry and prose, dance, chorus... in short, barbarous artists, the beasts of our culture, are.
What would our culture have become without those beasts?
Galileo, James Joyce, Van Gogh, Emily Dickinson, Stravinsky, Anna Pavlova, DalĂ­ and so many others who were considered as the mad black sheep by the sane & tame flock of their time...?
My answer: NOWHERE.
I'm sure Bob Dylan would have liked singing your poem.
Thanks for this wild walk.
Doo do doo do doo do do doo...
:)

kaykuala said...

Dave,
Getting on the wild side is the mark of the typical teenager. Being able to keep the head above water is essential.Eventually everyone would correct themselves, may be a few couldn't though.Great verse!

Hank

Madeleine Begun Kane said...

A wonderful poem in which you pose some wild, imaginative questions.

Dave King said...

Claudia
I paralleled your experiences to an extent. Compensating for a sickly childhood and at the same time going to art school ('nuff said!) I became, I suppose, difficult. I agree completely that the tricky bit is balance.

kez
Hi, thanks for the comment, and welcome. I sure wouldn't like to lose what little bit of wildness I have left! A good point you make.

Brian
Yes, I take your point. Your post makes it plain. Thanks for an interesting comment.

Brendan
Hi! Good to have you visiting and making such a reassuring comment. Thank you for it.

whatintheworldrudoing
Hi! A very warm welcome to my blog. I agree with your Socratic questioning remark. Thank you for making it, I was dimly afraid I might be criticised for offering no answers!

haricot
True, very true, but thanks.

Crafty Green Poet
Thank you for that. Yes, people are still fascinated by it, I think - but from behind the arm chair!

James
Good to have you visiting. Thank you very much for a valuable comment.

Daydreamertoo
Hi, Many thanks for your visit. You are most welcome - as are your comments. You are correct, I think, to link technology with our lack of compassion. It puts everything at one more remove from us and dulls the natural feelings.

Heaven
Very many thanks. It was - as always - good to read your comments.

manicddaily
Hi, Good to have you along. Pleasing to see the rhythms mentioned in association with an undercurrent of longing. Thanks.

wolfsrosebud
Very interesting. Thank you for an intriguing comment which, like yourself, is most welcome. I shall give it some thought.

The Orange Tree
Hi! Good to have your visit. Thank you for stopping by to comment.

Laurie
Thank you for this, a really generous response.

hedgewitch
A very warm welcome to you and a sincere thank you for your thought-provoking and very helpful comments. They are much appreciated and will be well mulled over.

Caty
Thank you for this response. Intriguing - not unpleasing - choice! Useful info'.

Luke
Hi, good to have you aboard and to have your response. Thanks for saying.

Tommaso
As always, my thanks for a very helpful comment.

Old Kitty
And my thanks to you for such a generous comment. Really good to have.

Windsmoke
Thank you for saying so. it really is good to have your comments.

Glenn
Hi and a warm welcome to you. This is most useful feedback, thank you for making the visit and for commenting.

Mark
Hi Mark, yes it was a great prompt, and more than that. It suggested all kinds of roads to follow, almost spoiling us for choice. But the text itself was a joy, so thank you for it - and for this valuable comment.

ds
And thank you - very much. Yes, I rather think we have become too complacent.

Dulcina
Fab' comment, for which I thank you very much. I completely agree. the worry is that these wild ones aren't around now - or don't seem to be. Instead of a modern equivalent of the Fauves we have faux fauves who simply pose as Fauves.

kaykuala
I think that sums it up very well!

Madeleine
Thank you for a very generous response.

Jenny Woolf said...

I love the use of a question in every verse. Another winner.

Mary said...

So much good can come from embracing a bit of the wild side. I love your questions as well.

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