Am I So Different?

Am I So Different?

A Poem by Ben Taylor

A glint of onyx,
A flash of pearl-white;
The moonlit ash-top tempts,
A human-hardened expanse
Emitting the scent of the
Unknown.
The enticement is unignorable.
In primal compliance,
The leaps and bounds
Hesitatingly hop
Across the tarmac.
A sudden illumination
Halts the advance;
A newly created conflation
Of fur and velocity
Ends feebly on the side
That originally allured.
Headlights dim in momentary
Mourning, leaving a trail of
Shattered confusion and
Disemboweled desire.

© 2011 Ben Taylor


Author's Note

Ben Taylor
Interpret and comment.

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Reviews

This made me think of a rabbit in the road, then I read the other reviews and it seems Judy agrees, so am I far off?
The title makes me think you're making a connection between the rabbit being killed by a car and the situation you're in...
I'd end up quoting the entire thing if I tried to explain my interpretation fully though :L
How close was it? xD

This is brilliantly written, your poems always are (:

Posted 13 Years Ago


Bit confused by what is conveyed by 'ash-top' and how this can be a 'human hardened expanse', as i originally thought of an ash tree. But i liked the concisely narrated description of the animal, who following every instinct to follow its desire, gets pulped by the oncoming vehicle, and how 'conflation' hints at our own instincts being no less basic nor less compulsive. The last 4 lines carry the weight of both human response to and human irresponsibility for tragedy.

The poem reminds me of the style and content of J.G.Ballard's novel 'Crash'.

Posted 13 Years Ago


Wow this is powerful and straight to the core. I really don't know how to interrrupt this but it's {Very well written}

Posted 13 Years Ago


Alright, here goes. :) To me this is about an animal attracted to the road, a vehicle stops the animal when it hits it thus the "newly created conflation" (which I had to look up :) thank you for the new word :) ) and the animal lying dead at the very side of the road it wanted to be on. The driver feels remorse as he she drives away from the animals shattered body.

As for the comments, I feel you put this together very well though I'm confused as to if I think it is a furred animal as you referred to or frogs "hopping" across the road way. I feel you captured the essence of the situation, where the animal is inexorably attracted to the road perhaps by roadkill and then tragically killed. The words flow easily and the images are well done in this piece. Well done once again :)

And after all that, I reread your title? And wonder, am I so far off on this. I believe I have the overlying picture, but with your title perhaps you have a deeper meaning, wondering if you are the creature being drawn to its death or perhaps the driver destroying??? Hmmmmmm. Thought provoking when you look deeper. :)

Posted 13 Years Ago



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Added on April 12, 2011
Last Updated on April 14, 2011

Author

Ben Taylor
Ben Taylor

Columbia, MO



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Almost everything I write now is relatively real, so just read what I write and get to know me. more..

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