The Unforgiven Poet

to no good end

The Unforgiven Poet

 

                     “By his death, the veil of poetry is rent

                           and the walls of learning broken."

                    Seamus Heaney

 

History repeats: and the frail one

whose hours were married to shadow

 

from the beginning, went first,

confused and depressed

 

inspecting the oven in the flat

in Yeats’ old house,

 

doors and windows sealed

to protect the children.

 

Assia, out of favour

with her lover’s friends and eclipsed

 

by the public Plath, became  

sad woman with child, who left second,

 

touchingly together on a mattress laid

on the kitchen floor after that last meal

 

of watered pills, whisky and gas.

And still, it was you Littleblood,

 

who wrote far more pages

and filled far more days with words,

 

devastated though you were

and hounded by Sylvian acolytes.

 

Standing alone between lovers,

stoic in your grief before the next

 

episode of aberrant behavior.

There were clues in Sylvia’s last letters

 

of ugly words, clenched fists, miscarriage.

But could it be you missed the signs? 

 

Prior to you, attempts had been made:

pills in the cellar, car driven into a river.

 

Demanding death of another is not a request

easily recalled with a faint trace of regret

 

or to be made when angry blood races

through the veins in a feverish moment.

 

You may have been a great poet.

There are those who claim yes.

 

Yet, with intricate histories entwined

for what are you remembered?

  

 

Second line (from the Colossus) by Sylvia Plath

 

 

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

ah this is so true...he is remembered more for the devastation he left behind than any poem he ever wrote...
history remembers, we remember...his words lost in that shuffle...
I think Sylvia was better than he ever hoped to be.
Obviously you strike a chord here with me since i did my thesis on Plath and Sexton...
and yes, Plath may have gotten there eventually on her own, but he sure helped her along...
and then his second and child...something about Ted, isn't there.
well done here.
j.

[Ted Kniffen]

Thanks for reading, j. Yes, I was aware that your thesis was on Plath & Sexton. So I hope I did it justice.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

oh my...you did it much more than just "justice"---
you did it proud, my friend. You capture the situation perfectly...and the aftermath as well.

[Ted Kniffen]

Thanks, j. I seldom concern myself with readers opinions, but this was one I did worry about.

[barleygirl]

This is a great back-and-forth that, in combination with your well-stated poem, taught me & helped me appreciate your poem even more! Thanks for sharing, both of you! (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[jacob erin-cilberto]

see what you started Ted?
Your write is so good, and sparked such reaction.
j.

[Ted Kniffen]

Thank you both for your words. After re-reading, I can see where this is much better than what I thought at first.

[Beccy]

I remain ambivalent about the real truth. Easy to lay blame; but from personal experience, impossible to really know.

The ayes to the right, the nays to the left; but only the fly on the wall knows it all.

Excellent poem!

[Ted Kniffen]

Thanks for reading, Beccy. Yes, no one knows for certain what went on then, so difficult to assess the situation from this perspective.

[Cherrie Palmer]

This old style of speech flowed with ease and grace as I read it. It was generous and full of meaning. What clues do we miss as we scurry about, too busy to listen or glean the truth of another. What a loss, to me personally I cannot say, but anytime life is willfully poured out we all lose a little.
"Married to the shadows.." what a phrase, wish I thought it up.

[Ted Kniffen]

Thanks for reading, Cherrie. Yes, quite often we miss the signs.
I kind of wish I had written the "married to shadow" bit, but that was Sylvia's line from 'The Colossus"

[Cherrie Palmer]

Yes, that was an excellent choice to glean from. She had a magical way with words.

[Coyote Poetry]

I was force to read Sylvia words in college. I lost two brother to suicide. Her words written with wanting death and trying to escape life. I stayed away from. Your words told a story. Few can understand. Poet, suicide watch, most of her life. Left more questions than answers. Powerful words and thoughts shared Ted.
Coyote

[John Alexander McFadyen]

Ted Hughes writ large in a wonderfully constructed post mortem. Jacob will be jealous as Plath is one of his major subjects and I fear he detests Hughes?

[Ted Kniffen]

Thanks for reading, John, I do appreciate it. That was one of my concerns with this one, was Jacob's reaction...luckily he liked it.

[John Alexander McFadyen]

Ah so I see. He is a master of all things Plath and more.