Rate-a-Poem: Woebegone

[William Haskins]

By Yusef Komunyakaa (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/books/features/19980830.htm)


Woebegone

We pierce tongue
& eyebrow, foreskin
& nipple, as if threading wishes
on gutstring. Gold bead
& question mark hook
into loopholes & slip
through. We kiss
like tiny branding irons.
Loved ones guard words
of praise, & demigods mortgage
nighttime. Beneath bruised
glamor, we say, "I'll show
how much I love by
how many scars I wear."
As we steal the last
drops of anger, what can we
inherit from Clarksdale's blue
tenements? Medieval & modern,
one martyr strokes another
till Torquemada rises.
We trade bouquets
of lousewort, not for the red
blooms & loud perfume,
but for the lovely spikes.

[P.H.Delarran]

OK, I have to admit, I don't know what Clarksdale's blue tenements might be, nor do I understand anything about Torquemada rising and martyrs stroking...well, I do get the martyr part actually. Anyway, this feels like it could be a good poem if I was more clued in.:Shrug:
But I gave it a three because it compelled me to peruse further.

[Paint]

I gave it a 5. It has what I like in poetry, pain, humor, irony, minimal, and it is real. Plus I relate to it, even though my ears are the only thing I have pierced so far. Unless you count my heart...
I think this one to be more in the style of William, I could be wrong.

[Perks]

Sometimes the mood of the reader will sway, probably too much, an assessment. My eyes kept skipping forward and not only could I not hold the thread, I couldn't be bothered to look for it. This one didn't exert any pull on me whatsoever.

[Unique]

This would be a 4.5 from me. Like Paint, I admire the minimalist -
probably because I'm not one. I'm leery of granting a 5 - perfection - I'm still looking. Creation is a tough act to follow.