In Dreams We Break (A Villanelle)
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In dreams we break, and are torn asunder,
shunned while velvet nights shudder and rage,
so we wake to escape, our spirits bolder.
Cahiers, written by a nameless author,
though modest, defile with each stained page,
in dreams we break, and are torn asunder.
Exuent a fear impossible to master,
a dark light prances and torments the stage,
while we wake to escape, our spirits older.
Cursed is this contract, to place an actor
confessing her lines, even moved to persuade
as we dream and break, and are torn asunder.
A minstrel sings of Tristan and Isolde,
lovers crossed and doomed by curious fate,
unlike them we wake and escape, our spirits lighter.
Jostled 'tween two worlds, yet courage is steered
by checks and balances, a bittersweet adage:
although in dreams we break, and are torn asunder,
we shall wake to escape, our spirits bolder.
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Something I wrote to explain my affection for traditional forms, and the basic writing process over at another thread, Poetry - Proper writing styles and formats....
Comments are welcomed. -
Hi peebrain,
must confesss its abit too abstract for me to understand...esp the 1st tercet..i dont understand why (the dreamer?) is shunned by the velvet nights, tho i do get the feel of why when the dreamer escapes from the nightmare, he feels better (bolder).
Also, is it necessary in a villanelle, to use archaic language e.g. cahiers or exeunt? Or is this the effect you wish to achieve? Esp with the further reference to the old tale of tristan and isolde ( i love the poem in that movie, by the way!!!)
anyway, if you could explain the signficance of all the stage references...
tks... -
A dreamer that is torn apart by vivid nightmares -- in essence he/she is very much alone. Although the nights are the reasons behind her breakdown, they do not in any way take responsibility for that -- the world still goes on, and one is left feeling very insignificant, and abandoned.Originally posted by expiringpoet:Hi peebrain,
must confesss its abit too abstract for me to understand...esp the 1st tercet..i dont understand why (the dreamer?) is shunned by the velvet nights, tho i do get the feel of why when the dreamer escapes from the nightmare, he feels better (bolder).
Also, is it necessary in a villanelle, to use archaic language e.g. cahiers or exeunt? Or is this the effect you wish to achieve? Esp with the further reference to the old tale of tristan and isolde ( i love the poem in that movie, by the way!!!)
And you don't have to use archaic language at all -- the reasons why I used words such as "cahier" and "exuent" stems largely from my background, and also because I wanted to regulate the references used in the poem -- mainly that of theatre, literature and myth.
(This is where a poet's distinct style is developed, methinks)
If you want to read more about villanelles, check out Sylvia Plath's "Mad Girl's Love Song", and Dylan's "Do Not Go Gently Into the Night".
More importantly, you must realize that the villanelle works by oral repetition of the couplet, more so than its admittedly archaic roots. -
Oops. I forgot to address this bit.Originally posted by expiringpoet:anyway, if you could explain the signficance of all the stage references...
tks...
Stage references -- hmm. How shall I begin? Dreaming for me, is a personal matter, of which I feel are merely stylized and dramaticised interpretations of reality. Allusions to theatre and the stage therefore are pertinent for the subject matter.
(gosh I'm actually doing Prac Crit for my poem. -chagrined)
So, the obvious references are:
1. Tristan and Isolde, solely for the fact that this love story has been rehashed in all manners possible down the ages)
2. Cahiers, or leather-bound manuscripts -- the bed where creativity basically ferments, much like Shakespeare's folios.
3. "Prances and torments" -- derived from Macbeth's "struts and frets upon the stage", all the men "merely players".
4. Contract -- the actor's contract, and duty to paint the script alive, to confess and to persuade. Dreams are vivid because they're so realistic.
5. Ministrel -- another stage player, only low brow and commonplace, as oppose to theatre.
6. "Jostled 'tween two worlds" -- to traverse the fantastical world of theater requires a healthy suspension of belief, which is relieved upon the end of the drama. But in dreaming, it is recurrent, hence the need to "steer courage" by "checks and balances", to preserve a semblence of sanity.
I hope this helps you understand the poem a little better. I didn't think it was abstract, but thanks for letting me know.
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CHEEM...
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Well. that is constructive.Originally posted by Devil1976:CHEEM...
Which part of it do you not understand? -
Hello Devil,Originally posted by Devil1976:CHEEM...
This one cheem or not?
Do not go gentle into that good night
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
By Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953) -
Tks PB and DP...i like Mad Girl's Love Song and Do not go gently...
Tho i hate depressing poetry about suicide...and Plath has major issues with suicide, its not too bad, i like the strong angry voice in the poem. Much prefer the Dylan Thomas poem, pretty emotional i must say.