台灣詩學‧吹鼓吹詩論壇

〈怪物的孩子〉

怪物的孩子被拎起
丟進推車裡
他們扭開它的頭蓋骨
他們戳它的腦
放光它白色的血
他們歡呼勝利
他們讚嘆正義
他們說是天的旨意
不許異議


"The Monster's Child"

The monster’s child is carried
And thrown into a cart
They twist off its skull
They stab on its brain
They drain off his white blood
They yell for victory
They hail to justice
They say it’s God’s will
Don't blashpeme

Rob:
Finally, I fixed the issue. It's the apostrophe in the title that creates the problem.

I am still trying to absorb this Monster's Child. Will get back to you soon on my view.

Have a very HAPPY new year!!

NN

My view on the Monster's child

We all despise that which is different, and we dehumanize it. This is a crowd mentality and that which is not our own (our “child”) is exorcised, even if it is merely a child. And we call it justified by God, done in the name of God, no matter how ghastly the crime.

And every warring tribe or faction that has ever existed on the earth has called its actions justified in the name of God.

The admonition at the end, “Don’t blaspheme” is a nice touch, a change in the poem, an interference from the poet speaking to the third person, “they”, to the cry from the poet, as though the poet has had enough. The last line could be a cry from God, a cry to stop the blasphemy in God’s name.

That is also a reflection of God not being able to do anything but cry out.

I was reminded of a few things as I read this poem. The Holocaust with the Nazis’ genocide of the Jews, the recent events of ISIL killing innocent children (including the public beheading of a 10 year old boy – unimaginable, but done in the name of God).

This poem is a good commentary on what people consider to be their “righteousness” in God’s eyes, only it is filth and blasphemy to God. See Isaiah 64:6 about human righteousness in the eyes of God.

Am I reading it correctly?

推薦置頂

羅拔 寫:〈怪物的孩子〉

怪物的孩子被拎起
丟進推車裡
他們扭開它的頭蓋骨
他們戳它的腦
放光它白色的血
他們歡呼勝利
他們讚嘆正義
他們說是天的旨意
不許異議


"The Monster's Child"

The monster’s child is carried
And thrown into a cart
They twist off its skull
They stab on its brain
They drain off his white blood
They yell for victory
They hail to justice
They say it’s God’s will
Don't blashpeme

Thank you so much for reading closely my poem. You are correct. I'm questioning the so called "Justice" today for it is too often an excuse for violence. Actually the images of this poem link to the "milk issue" in Taiwan. Protesters destroyed bottles of milk in some supermarkets for they thought the manufacturer is vicious by producing polluted food (oil) and should be punished. I also thought about other violence as you mentioned. And politicians often use the word "justice" to incite protests. So the word "Justice" has lost its real meaning and now refers to violence against dissenters. It's kinda absurd. And I'm trying to reflect the absurdity in my poem.

I said too much. Maybe I should leave rooms for this poem. And thank you for appreciating this poem!

Rob Chen