The New Pompeii

A poem about consumerism.

The New Pompeii

 

 

The dam of consumerism has exploded!

 

Rivers of silver and gold pours into wealthy cities all over the globe. It engulfs everything in its path. The river swamps the suburbs, it glides over the cars in front of homes, the shiny metallic substance works its way through the homes covering washing machines, televisions, computers, fridges, phones and a small boy playing on his game console.

 

The river of silver and gold runs into the city centre, it paints the buildings, roads, streets, shops, restaurants, supermarkets and people with a torrent of greed. It moves its way to the government buildings and drowns the politicians very slowly as it flows up from their polished shoes to their immaculate suits and finally the shiny liquid pours down their throats and into their lungs.

 

 

 Like molten lava it swims through the high street shops smashing the windows and covering its customers. A woman is trying on a new pair of high heels (she has over 100 pairs at home) a man is trying on a new suit while talking on his mobile phone about dinner arrangements for the evening.

 

No one is saved!

 

Once the damaged is done, everything is covered in silver and gold. The morning sun beams down on the sparkling roads and rooftops. Birds fly overhead, their feathers glisten form the brilliant light down below. Cats and dogs run through the cold metallic streets, trees, plants and the rest of nature survive the rivers.

 

Everywhere is silent, no noise from the human race,

 

The money has stopped being spent!

 ©LukeRitta

Reviews

[Writingfox]

Wonderful read. I have always enjoyed your descriptions and I dare say you have improved even more. I also really like your theme and idea, it is quite frightening to see the parallels between seemingly ancient history and our society today. My only suggestion is to clean up and deepen "...A woman is trying on a new pair of high heels (she has over 100 pairs at home) a man is trying on a new suit while talking on his mobile phone about dinner arrangements for the evening." Take it and run with it, I know you can dive into it even more!

[Ruth]

When I read your work love, it leaves me breathless! I truly mean that in an inspired and thrilling manner....you are wise beyond your years and verse words as though they have a soul of their own! Absolutely astonishing xoxo

[Reeti]

it's a really amusing verse hinted with strong satire. the economic cycle has been materialized distinctively in it by the witty metaphorical use of phrases like 'river of silver and gold' or 'molten lava' with a subtle, bold and threatening move.
'The molten lava' suits very well to reflect consumerism (though imagery-wise in the practical sense, it's strange to find a river turning into lava).
'The dam of consumerism' has time and time again been exploded. Mercenary values and interests never leave men from doing harm unto themselves or others. it's about time i've read a writing concerning consumerism (more like extreme consumerism)! =)

[*~*Butterfly Kisses*~*]

Loved the imagery, a truthful and honest write comparing the times of the past and present.


Nicely done.

[Cathy Wattam]

This is great and oh so true. Love the imagery. Fantastic title too. Well done.

[Stammers]

two typos before I forget - 'once the damaged is done', unless that was intentionally hinting at a damaged society. Also, 'trying on a new suite', again, unless I missed something.

Anyway, enough of that crap. You drew a great parallel here, makes for brilliant imagery and a huge statement. The more you read this, the more chilling it gets. The change of pace is very effective, from engulfing whole streets to then slowly murdering politicians - very clever reflection on who has been hit by recession and debt the hardest, and how. I think this is really clever, which sounds a little dry, but it really is a brilliant observation.

A scientist pointed out that our pace of developing technology and the Westen-led global culture we've created, has left us as the first generation to live amongst the ruins of our own creations; oil plants, housing developments gone bust... random thought that this reminded me of.

[Hayley]

I loved this! " It moves its way to the government buildings and drowns the politicians very slowly as it flows up from their polished shoes to their immaculate suits and finally the shiny liquid pours down their throats and into their lungs."

This is very descriptive and intense, especially the money sinking into the lungs of the consumer. At the end, it is a sad picture yet an amazing picture, like life hasn't begun yet. You raise an interesting and debated observation; I think you are most certainly right. We are obsessed with quantity than we are with nonmaterialistic things.

[Aarontastic]

Very timely write; it does a nice job limning mankind's obsession with money and its addiction to consumerism. Conceptualizing this obsession as an inexorable river of silver in gold and linking it allegorically to the eruption of Pompeii in Roman times was an effective way of conveying the apocalyptic nature of the financial collapse, which is the ultimate consequence of unrestrained and irresponsible capitalist fervor.

While this write is vivid and graphic, it seems to me like it could have been more clever than it is now...like there is more you could do here to strengthen the parallel between the disaster wrecked Pompeii and the disaster of the City and Wall Street. At the end you mention how plants and the rest of nature survives the rivers, which lends a certain purity and innocence to those things; maybe you could take that a little further?

Also, in the decades following volcanic eruptions, the ecosystem eventually restores itself and grows back even stronger than before, thanks to the fertility of all that volcano stuff. The economy has a similar dynamic, because following crashes and meltdowns, there is eventually a recovery before it reaches new heights, and the consumerist obsession recrudesces. I think it would have been cool to somehow incorporate that idea of a never-ending, repeating cycle (prosperity, excessive greed, collapse, recovery, and prosperity again).

Even without that though, this is a solid poem-narrative hybrid thing :) There were a few mistakes here and there; I believe you misspelled 'shiny' twice, put high "hells" instead of high heels, and put 'suite' instead of suit. Nothing major though.

[Kandy Kitt]

This sounds like something that could definitely be a word spoken song. Very deep and interesting. Everything you put into this piece is very true about reality. It's very well written as well. And I could actually picture this. Very very good job my friend.

[Me]

beautifully written

[Alessander]

reminds me of the Midas myth. Gold as a metaphor for destruction and isolation.