Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Marge Piercy; Barbie Doll
Barbie Doll is a strong poem. I could feel the rhythm, hard and prodding; challenging at every turn our conscience, our utopian hopes for society. Perhaps this is a characteristic of a Beat poet. With the quickening pace, the imagery finds uncomfortable corners of our mind; the words are relentless and carefully chosen, from the title, to the stark details of death. Barbie Doll hurts; you don’t want to face the reality of the next line, but you must, like a tragic scene unfolding in front of you, you want to turn away, but you can’t.
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Here is a poem from William Dicky's series "Chants":
ReplyDelete"The Critic"
I unscrewed the lip from the mouth, the mouth I discarded.
I unscrewed the lid from the eye, the eye I discarded.
Here is a doll made form pieces. The pieces hate one another.
Here are the doll and I posed in a photograph.
After the photograph was taken, I unscrewed the camera.
--
I think this poem refers to a critic of literature, (ironic for us in ENG 42, getting credit for unscrewing the works of great poets) but perhaps it can be connected to Barbie Doll. Something about the diction (especially the middle line), the tone and the voice/style strike a chord for me with Marge Piercy.