IMAGE OF EARTH AND QUILL

Featured Guest Poet C.T. Alexander



His Highness 

Shaved thin and sound 
is the ground 
of faith 
by his highness. 

We trump, we bow 
Only to allow 
the king his holy pass. 

He Treads upon the feet 
of those who eat 
his grime 
And his shame. 

Glee to the courts, 
And Money to the ports 
Our highness is 
So Kind. 

Oh lovely scene, 
oh a beautiful sight, 
For Our King is so bright 
With thought 
and love. 

For All his People.


September, 2001

C.T. Alexander's Questions:

Hello, I am a young 16 year old poet, wanting some help with this poem.

What should I do with it?

Thanking you

Okay, first (and again these are only suggestions): write about what you know, the experiences of your OWN life, and second, avoid vague language that is centuries outdated like "faith" and "shame" and "kind" and third, avoid rhyme for awhile; it is more difficult than it looks and if not done really really well, it can make the whole poem seem like a journal entry than an attempt at a work of Art, and fourth, who is the speaker? who is the "we" and why should we, the readers, care? How can we, the readers, relate to this seemingly abstract concept? and lastly, don't try to put a message into your poem; it shouldn't be didactic. show the reader an image, a slice from your OWN life, and the message will be whatever the reader gets from it. His Highness Shaved thin and sound is the ground of faith by his highness. We trump, we bow Only to allow the king his holy pass. He Treads upon the feet of those who eat his grime And his shame. Glee to the courts, And Money to the ports Our highness is So Kind. Oh lovely scene, oh a beautiful sight, For Our King is so bright With thought and love. For All his People.
Matthew <msilverman_20@hotmail.com>
New Orleans, LA USA - Sat Oct 13 10:24:58 2001

Hi Chris. Sounds like Matthew wants the 'juice'. Me too. I guess we all do. You know, puppy-dog vs. porcelain vase; vases can be pretty, but puppies, we can feel--make a connection with. And, I've heard it too, "write what you know." (I don't think it really applies here, though.) But, when you think about it, what do any of us REALLY know? (This is nasty, but I thought, "Walt Whitman's pages would all be blank.") Anyway, your poem is a 'porcelain vase'. So, your question was, what can you do with it? Well, you could put it in the 'spotlight'--scoot it all over to the center of the page. (Give it prominence.) And, you could 'polish' it up--make it look pretty. Maybe start each line with a capital letter. Even, 'bold' the first letter of each stanza. If you're feeling flamboyant, enlarge the font of the bolden letters. I think it's a pretty poem. The rhyme and meter sound fine. Speaking of rhyme, I TOTALLY disagree with Matthew. I think it's a matter of personal choice. If you want to rhyme: rhyme. Lastly, you're 16 years old--spilling your soul can be a scary thing for a teenager. Until you're ready to share your feelings, 'vases' are good practic--keep up the good work! (Hi Matthew)
Wanda Kay
USA - Tue Oct 16 06:09:48 2001

Readers: You may wish to contact C.T. Alexander privately with your ideas about this poem.