Poetic Encryption Like Ancient Egyptian

Poetic Encryption Like Ancient Egyptian This terror and threat to poetic clarity, Becomes a pet rock for some poets. Words do count for sure, but so does Clarity unless poets put a mask on. Encryption can be used to mask Certain vatic pretensions that poets Harbor, at times, when waxing eloquently About some trendy theme or some idea Or notion deemed as avant-garde. If hieroglyphics were to be readily used In our now advanced world of modernity, Would they be viewed as: A rifacimento? A renaissance? A code? It all could be plain nonsense too! Or maybe not . . . In T. S. Eliot’s, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” He enchants and captivates his readers to a rare and Flavorful taste of vers libre, if one might be so bold, That is selectively sparing, and yet, well-calibrated, With intermittent sprinklings of superbly crafted Visual imagery and eloquent tonal alliteration— And varied meter, rhythm, and rhyme. “Prufrock” is palpable with emotion and metaphor, yet— Detached from a ready explanation of the delicious Power of the words with which Eliot mesmerizes his Readers with the devout cleverness of a Pied Piper. One could see the eternal Footman And hear his snicker—and be afraid; One could roll one’s trousers; One could dare to eat a peach; One could walk upon the beach; One could hear the mermaids sing; But will the mermaids sing to him? Only Eliot really truly knows . . . The real Prufrockian mien here. Are not such metaphors there . . . To make us think? To enchant our senses? To play on our fears? To be emotive? And, yes . . . To tantalize our passions? And, yes . . . To excite our psychic yearnings? Yes . . . Contemplation is always vital! Some poets speak in a self-tribal code. Sometimes artful obfuscation is the real goal, And sometimes—maybe not. A cacophonic scramble of Demonstrative and passionate Words, thoughts, emotions. All so pure and all so real, And all in the poet’s mind! All so exact and all so real! Some, like the legendary Sylvia Plath, Bring the reader to a forlorn world of Lost faith, utter despair, and loneliness In the midst of such a sad dream world. Plath’s lyric poem — “Edge” Summons readers to the brink; Occurring one week before her Untimely suicide. The power and symbolism Resident in this, her final poem, Point toward . . . A perfection, A completion, A tragic tribalism. Plath’s symbology is both Intense and compelling; Forming its own sense of Encryption while embellishing A supernatural aura of immortality. The redoubtable Ezra Pound in his “Hugh Selwyn Mauberley,” and in Many other of his complex poems, Personifies a certain form of encryption With his use of symbols and metaphors, A mix of foreign languages, and a definite Convulsion of syntax which makes for an Intellectual “Rite of Passage” defying, at times, A clear analysis and ready understanding. Pound in “Mauberley,” writes on various Levels begging much pre-knowledge from Each reader while amply teasing us with: His gnomic predilection for novel themes; His thirst for the unexpected and unusual; His formidable knowledge and language forte; His array of uniquely woven word tapestries; And his referential flair for striking aphorisms. Pound does all of this so magnificently . . . All the while forming imagery challenging A reader’s sense of understanding: Leaving a sense of syntactical encryption Writ Large! Always challenging and never ever dull! That is, if one’s cup of tea is reveling in the complex! There is a profound literary sense to what some may say Is Pound’s Janus-faced proclivity for genius and madness. Pound will not disappoint you regardless of which bipolar Face you ascribe to him. Although, contrast and comparison are very important . . . Yet, I proffer that deep thinking and sometimes actually Being confused at times . . . May result ultimately in a true epiphany, Leading each of us to a spirit of greater understanding! I end with John Keats, who has left all of us, as poets, With his immeasurable sense of naturalistic Humanism. Keats’ pursuit of metaphor, nuance, descriptive imagery, And sagacious symbology reflect the highest degree of Poetic mastery and a strong sense of perspicacity obvious In all of his works! Keats also uses a type of poetic encryption— With his diction, imagery, thoughts, and verse syncopation; He’s quite elegant with his varied and fluent thematic reveries. They’re always a joy to decipher, whilst leaving us to bask in Their powerful sense of clarity and persuasive meaning! Many of Keats’ works reflect this form of encryption . . . “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” Particularly comes to mind in this instance, As well as his famous “Ode” narratives; And his superb Grecian epic fragment: “The Fall of Hyperion,” Presents the reader with a veritable smorgasbord of contrasts And imagery, and an imaginative view of the classical conflict Between the Olympians and the Titans! Divining the complex, chaotic, and unpredictable In our world of arcane symbolism and imagery, Reflect the modern world we live in today. Poetic Encryption is indeed . . . So like Ancient Egyptian! Hieroglyphics, after all, form their own Sense of imagery and word pictures . . . Analogous to what we do today with the Words, images, metaphors, emotions, and Symbols in our poetry! Poetic Encryption is so like Ancient Egyptian! Amen! Amen! Amen! Gary Bateman, Copyright © All Rights Reserved, April 25, 2016 (Narrative)