I began with feeling a little perturbed, just a little ,when I started reading the preamble of this 'reply poem',, What no Melly or Formby !!!! However I found the poem quite moving. The fact that the man took the child in and raised her, despite others opinions ,was actually rather uplifting as he could have just walked away. Can I dare ask was it just shame he felt through their time together and then after she left?
Anyway ,basically I really enjoyed it. We sadly don't get enough stories/sagas/ ballads of selkies, kelpies witches ,and fairies etc in the world today so many thanks for this
. For some reason interspecies relationships aren't questioned if they are in folklore or mythology,not that I'm an advocate but noone gets their knickers in a twist about Pasiphea and the Bull or Leda and the Swan,or maybe its ok if the swan is the king of the Gods.But then perhaps folklore reflects our inner fears and desires and we can run riot with it ,without fear of censure and with impunity
You raise some interesting points. I think that through their time together he would have felt a terrible mixture of love and shame and duty. And the fact that I regard him as a figure who you can sympathise with is telling. Its an odd poem, both ridiculous, and something a bit above ridiculousness.
There is more where that came from.
As for the kelpies, selkies and general bestailists, Drake had plenty - theres is even a Swan Maiden poem containing the words -
"The white swan maid is lost in the human wife who sings as she goes about her calm house caring."
Ride a white swan like the people of the Beltane indeed.
Hah. I recall one of my earliest R2W visits you read this out. Your work and attitude stand out (sorry) as a major cause in my sticking with the group. I'm glad I did, because you lead me onto stubsmack and even included some of my verse in online publication. Which is very little to do about this post and it's subject matter. As a bloke, need I even state a shared nag not of the mother/wive's doing [but NOT with a seal or any other non-spapiens]?
I am however havering, shilly-shallying and wavering in a purgatorious state about publishing an article I have started and deleted twice. Now in it's third draft, I'm happy with it's content (relevant to this post) however letting it out (sorry again) publicly is what bothers me. It is frank, honest and brutally to the point - regarding suicide, desires and associated human/social wranglings. I care not a jot for whom it might offend - they won't have read it with an open mind. But knowing how the web courses with wazerks who'd have St Francis in court for touching hens before you could say "BJORK".
I'm also painfully painful that it involves public figures whose names get dropped for self aggrandisement. Yet there seems no other way to tell the story with any poignancy (that is not a French spring either). Well done Mike!!
I'm looking forward to whatever you decide to post Alex - I myself aim to go on a further journey of exploration along this particular avenue for next week's post, and then I have promised myself that that particular line of enquiry will end (at least for a while) and I shall return to less awkward subject matter.
Sadly, I thought of this young man at Stanford, on a swimmer’s scholarship, who r-worded an unconscious drunken girl openly and was caught by two horrified European male students. He was convicted, this golden boy, but as he had a lot of money and social position he got his life back. It is interesting how these ancient myths still play out, even on top tier American campuses.
They do think these Selkie myths evolved from the seal skinned boats and clothing of the brown Inuit outsiders.
The connection with societal guilt of r-wording the native american and African population because they were considered less than human is apt in this analysis.
Many Americans are related to Davy Crocket, including my first cousin, who has Native American DNA on her father’s side. Intermarriage was common. Intermarriage between Africans and Native Americans was as well. European American early settlers here often have Native and African DNA, particularly prevalent as the runaway African slaves disappeared into Native American tribes. My best girlfriend is one. She was told she had Choctaw Cherokee blood but so far all that has appeared in her DNA other than Caucasian is African.
Your poem describing the nonchalant way in which he “shags” the seal is an accurate description of the racist approach to some sexual violence. They lack the ability to feel empathy for their victim. In the case of the young man at Stanford, his wealth and societal position emboldened him to r-word the unconscious girl, really little different, this wealth entitlement program in which we we live.
In your poem, the man repents by suffering, rather like our preacher in The Scarlet Letter.
I never fully understood until recently how out of one’s control the “male urge” can be, and it can be difficult to spot and identify it in another, the addiction, and how it might ultimately harm you. It is brave of you to write about it. I enjoy this group so much. I like that this American writer was found in an early form of pulp fiction. My first and favorite writer is Edgar Allen Poe, who admired many contemporary American poetesses and even copied their work at times. Some of them are still known today thanks to his admiration of their work. Only some men are brutes and that is important to keep in mind. From the standpoint of modern psychology it is questionable to what extent some who lack the ability to feel empathy (in other words, malignant narcissists and of course psychopaths) will ever pay their way to redemption. They get good lawyers and become presidents.
Thanks for this insightful and well written reply. I really appreciate it when someone reads a piece of mine that many others think of as nothing but a piece of dark humour and see the serious thought behind it.
I had not thought of the link between the man’s behaviour with the seal and the behaviour of men in racist environments. The last line you wrote comes as a really perceptive, and is quite dispiriting because of the truth in it.
If people knew the depths we traverse to surface with a poem. We used to do a lot of theatre work and would say, if the audience knew the hours of discussion and controversy during the rehearsal process on things as simple as why and how a character crosses the stage at a precise moment, but all the audience sees is the finished piece.
I will post a short political poem. My favorite American poets are all on the doom scroll now. It is a pleasure to read all these Yorkshire folk.
The elephant in the room here is a gigantic bombastic psychopathic presence increasingly difficult to avoid.
The process of writing for me is getting to the truth. I am as surprised as you, my reader, where and how my stories conclude. Thank you for reading me, as well. My “wealth entitlement program” line came out of nowhere.
As a poet I often come to similar killer conclusions. I appreciate your support. The selkie becoming the girl at Stanford becoming the destruction of our society — these are difficult moments. The fine group of poets posting here— I find poetry on the ascendancy when I read them. We need to bring our words into the mainstream in order to restore art. The attack on art is very real here as you may have read. I am making reels to get into the zeitgeist but my heart is with these wonderful poets you attract.
So long as you don't write a poem called 'I Dogged A Dolphin' we'll still be on speaking terms. Part of the joy of Mike O'Brien is that you never know what he's going to do next.
I began with feeling a little perturbed, just a little ,when I started reading the preamble of this 'reply poem',, What no Melly or Formby !!!! However I found the poem quite moving. The fact that the man took the child in and raised her, despite others opinions ,was actually rather uplifting as he could have just walked away. Can I dare ask was it just shame he felt through their time together and then after she left?
Anyway ,basically I really enjoyed it. We sadly don't get enough stories/sagas/ ballads of selkies, kelpies witches ,and fairies etc in the world today so many thanks for this
. For some reason interspecies relationships aren't questioned if they are in folklore or mythology,not that I'm an advocate but noone gets their knickers in a twist about Pasiphea and the Bull or Leda and the Swan,or maybe its ok if the swan is the king of the Gods.But then perhaps folklore reflects our inner fears and desires and we can run riot with it ,without fear of censure and with impunity
You raise some interesting points. I think that through their time together he would have felt a terrible mixture of love and shame and duty. And the fact that I regard him as a figure who you can sympathise with is telling. Its an odd poem, both ridiculous, and something a bit above ridiculousness.
There is more where that came from.
As for the kelpies, selkies and general bestailists, Drake had plenty - theres is even a Swan Maiden poem containing the words -
"The white swan maid is lost in the human wife who sings as she goes about her calm house caring."
Ride a white swan like the people of the Beltane indeed.
Animals have their attractions but compatibility is the deciding factor, so I’ve heard.
Hah. I recall one of my earliest R2W visits you read this out. Your work and attitude stand out (sorry) as a major cause in my sticking with the group. I'm glad I did, because you lead me onto stubsmack and even included some of my verse in online publication. Which is very little to do about this post and it's subject matter. As a bloke, need I even state a shared nag not of the mother/wive's doing [but NOT with a seal or any other non-spapiens]?
I am however havering, shilly-shallying and wavering in a purgatorious state about publishing an article I have started and deleted twice. Now in it's third draft, I'm happy with it's content (relevant to this post) however letting it out (sorry again) publicly is what bothers me. It is frank, honest and brutally to the point - regarding suicide, desires and associated human/social wranglings. I care not a jot for whom it might offend - they won't have read it with an open mind. But knowing how the web courses with wazerks who'd have St Francis in court for touching hens before you could say "BJORK".
I'm also painfully painful that it involves public figures whose names get dropped for self aggrandisement. Yet there seems no other way to tell the story with any poignancy (that is not a French spring either). Well done Mike!!
I'm looking forward to whatever you decide to post Alex - I myself aim to go on a further journey of exploration along this particular avenue for next week's post, and then I have promised myself that that particular line of enquiry will end (at least for a while) and I shall return to less awkward subject matter.
Sadly, I thought of this young man at Stanford, on a swimmer’s scholarship, who r-worded an unconscious drunken girl openly and was caught by two horrified European male students. He was convicted, this golden boy, but as he had a lot of money and social position he got his life back. It is interesting how these ancient myths still play out, even on top tier American campuses.
They do think these Selkie myths evolved from the seal skinned boats and clothing of the brown Inuit outsiders.
The connection with societal guilt of r-wording the native american and African population because they were considered less than human is apt in this analysis.
Many Americans are related to Davy Crocket, including my first cousin, who has Native American DNA on her father’s side. Intermarriage was common. Intermarriage between Africans and Native Americans was as well. European American early settlers here often have Native and African DNA, particularly prevalent as the runaway African slaves disappeared into Native American tribes. My best girlfriend is one. She was told she had Choctaw Cherokee blood but so far all that has appeared in her DNA other than Caucasian is African.
Your poem describing the nonchalant way in which he “shags” the seal is an accurate description of the racist approach to some sexual violence. They lack the ability to feel empathy for their victim. In the case of the young man at Stanford, his wealth and societal position emboldened him to r-word the unconscious girl, really little different, this wealth entitlement program in which we we live.
In your poem, the man repents by suffering, rather like our preacher in The Scarlet Letter.
I never fully understood until recently how out of one’s control the “male urge” can be, and it can be difficult to spot and identify it in another, the addiction, and how it might ultimately harm you. It is brave of you to write about it. I enjoy this group so much. I like that this American writer was found in an early form of pulp fiction. My first and favorite writer is Edgar Allen Poe, who admired many contemporary American poetesses and even copied their work at times. Some of them are still known today thanks to his admiration of their work. Only some men are brutes and that is important to keep in mind. From the standpoint of modern psychology it is questionable to what extent some who lack the ability to feel empathy (in other words, malignant narcissists and of course psychopaths) will ever pay their way to redemption. They get good lawyers and become presidents.
Thanks for this insightful and well written reply. I really appreciate it when someone reads a piece of mine that many others think of as nothing but a piece of dark humour and see the serious thought behind it.
I had not thought of the link between the man’s behaviour with the seal and the behaviour of men in racist environments. The last line you wrote comes as a really perceptive, and is quite dispiriting because of the truth in it.
If people knew the depths we traverse to surface with a poem. We used to do a lot of theatre work and would say, if the audience knew the hours of discussion and controversy during the rehearsal process on things as simple as why and how a character crosses the stage at a precise moment, but all the audience sees is the finished piece.
I will post a short political poem. My favorite American poets are all on the doom scroll now. It is a pleasure to read all these Yorkshire folk.
The elephant in the room here is a gigantic bombastic psychopathic presence increasingly difficult to avoid.
The process of writing for me is getting to the truth. I am as surprised as you, my reader, where and how my stories conclude. Thank you for reading me, as well. My “wealth entitlement program” line came out of nowhere.
As a poet I often come to similar killer conclusions. I appreciate your support. The selkie becoming the girl at Stanford becoming the destruction of our society — these are difficult moments. The fine group of poets posting here— I find poetry on the ascendancy when I read them. We need to bring our words into the mainstream in order to restore art. The attack on art is very real here as you may have read. I am making reels to get into the zeitgeist but my heart is with these wonderful poets you attract.
So long as you don't write a poem called 'I Dogged A Dolphin' we'll still be on speaking terms. Part of the joy of Mike O'Brien is that you never know what he's going to do next.