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suffocate
on our own
pollution—
Not because of
selfish short-sight
(we see where we're going)
but because of “nice”:
Not wanting to step
out of affiliation-lines
and say, “This line moves
in a useless
direction,
wastes healthy
legs
and precious
time.
Who started
this line? We
should
be done
with it.”
And because
minority madmen—
not impulsive or naive
(they know what they do:
leeching infant
tomorrow-veins
to invest in a
MASSIVE FOOT
they can lift-and-
drop, to feel
power, to echo
infinite
through the
universe)
— They
know.
That if they
act like those
in the line,
smiling and
well-dressed with
polite questions
and happy
handshakes, they
can control
that line.
Because no
one nice would
ever dare
step out,
to challenge
a smiling
big foot
hand- out guy.
“Niceness…” is such a beautiful poem because of the vast interpretations that can be derived from it. For a reader like me, I interpret this poem to mean so much more than just what words are written within the poem. I feel as if the speaker is being critical of humans and the way we go about our lives. As Editor-in-Chief of my school newspaper, holding a leadership position it can sometimes be tough to get out of that constraint and follow that linear line. When it mentions the “smiling bigfoot hand-out guy” I resonate with it and how in any work organization or relationships in one’s life, one must learn how, like it stated in the poem, challenge that guy, the likable one. The example I gave above about the leadership role I hold at my school, I share this position with a fellow peer and that is done on purpose. Having two people with power versus one person benefits your audience more because one person does not know it all and having two minds working at it can be so beneficial. Straying away from that example, the poem also speaks out to me because of what is said between the lines. The beginning of the poem includes the idea of how physically humans will pollute themselves and whatnot but further down as one continues to read it goes into depth how being nice will lead everyone to essentially killing off the human race in the most cynical way to put it. So, when the speaker mentions this linear line that everyone is so hung up on, it demonstrates how humans have been constrained to not care enough or keep to their comfort zone instead of speaking out of the wrong that others do. That's where it foreshadows that pollution comment made in the beginning of the poem. Being too nice does not make one win in the end, one who is secure within themselves and who knows when it's the right time and place to be strong and secure and share that confidence is who wins in the end in my opinion at least.
ReplyDeleteThis poem identifies a misconception that we often use to comfort ourselves. There is this idea that issues that plague the human race can be attributed to a lack of forethought or understanding of the consequences. However, I don't think stupidity is an accurate description of our actions. As the poem reflects, people are controlled by greed and power. To maintain power, we have adopted this form of “niceness” or rather politics. When staying in the good graces of a certain institution becomes more important than the people the institution is meant to protect, there is an issue.
ReplyDeleteTo that point, anyone who does not choose to walk this line of performative action is instinctively labeled a radical. It is nearly impossible to think outside of set schools of thought. In this poem, we recognize that we will watch our demise slowly envelope us with bright smiles and cheesy speeches. We will face every warning sign within the boundaries of what is acceptable and what is not. With each coming challenge, again and again we will choose the charming politician to lead us further into our self-created delusions.
Further, in an intertextual sense, there is this obsession with maintaining traditions and certain manners simply because they already exist. The Stranger, a novel by Albert Camus, discusses the reactions by society when people step outside the line and do not do things because others do them. This “niceness” or desperate need to be accepted by following societal norms will render us ultimately unable to save ourselves and answer the warning calls we hear in our heads.
The collage accompanying this poem perfectly captures the absurdity of the “affiliation-lines” to which society adheres and, frankly, the inhumanity of the people who actively preserve those lines to abuse power and suppress any pushback on their agendas, especially when the criticism is warranted. Here is a person whose lower half is a “MASSIVE FOOT” and whose appearance is jumbled together with grand images of stars and galaxies, and society chooses to believe this leader is real. It is a choice to believe that this idol is true, and that we should follow people who claim to be this superhuman in corporal and intellectual form. By definition, this is impossible. Yet, the world continues to pretend it is because it always has and it is pressured by the past, present, and future to stagnate and further evade the reality that they choose to uphold the unjust and false systems that dictate how our world functions. I’m horrible at making decisions; I can never decide what I want to eat or how I want to spend my free time, but I’ve come to learn that my indecision is a secret, horrible third option that I often accidentally choose. Instead of deciding between pasta and soup, I choose to continue being hungry longer than necessary. I spend a morning debating whether I want to walk or drive to the library, and by the time I’ve decided, it’s closed. The indecision is worse than either of the choices I could have made. In the case of our world institutions and global problems, the threat is much scarier, as the “big foot / hand-out guy” actively prevents change from happening in order to hold position and power, and society must choose how to treat him. While waiting for the decision to be made, the problems get worse, the guy gets more power, and indecision secretly becomes the death of us all.
ReplyDeleteTo me, this poem puts into perspective the issues faced by our society at present. It makes us acutely aware that we are lulling ourselves into a false sense of security, especially in regards to issues like global warming. Those with power act like they have everyone’s best interests at heart when this could not be further from the truth. The biggest connection I saw with the modern world is green consumerism and how widely touted it is. Those with a platform tout these new innovations, recycled materials and new innovations as being a cure all to global warming. However, at the root of the problem lies consumerism, and we act as though changing what we consume will solve global warming and the issue it stems from: people want too much. We are too materialistic and are willing to stay in line to keep it that way. The poem instills a sense of fear in me when referring to the smiling big foot hand-out guy. On the surface, the appearance seems like nothing to be worried about. However, that smile is made of sharp teeth, the foot heavy for no other reason than to squash those who get out of line, and the hand-outs only there to keep people in line. They mimic the politicians of today, who know what they need to do to keep getting votes and act as though they are doing something. This poem shakes off that false sense of security those in power have lulled us into, reminding us that we are standing in line and must do something if we want any chance of changing the path we are on.
ReplyDelete