[ Catharsis - n. emotional and spiritual cleansing or purgation experienced by one who witnessed the rise and fall of a hero or heroine in a tragic play]
This poem is inspired by all the tragic heroes and heroines who have brought me face to face with my own hubris... - H.P. Atilano
My Catharsis
Because you owe me my catharsis, you,
Beautiful Ones, must die.
For as long as your inevitable fall
is an obligatory part of your story,
You will be my heroes: inherently good,
yet flawed.
My life-mentors, teach me empathy;
let hubris take its course
And teach me humility -- that even a god-
like beauty like you could fall.
My heroes, for you I will carve epitaphs
to immortalize you:
"Here lies Oedipus, King of Thebes, blind
'til the very end..."
"The Moor of Venice herein rests; Deceit and
Gullibility, his only friends..."
"Antigone, defender of the dead; devoted sister,
alone in death..."
...and I will save my tears for the epiphany,
for when Truth strikes its deadly blow;
...and I will shed those tears to wash off my
own hubris to give your death some worth.
Author's Note: Presumably, the persona here is addressing the tragic heroes in a sort of dramatic monologue and gives his/her definition of catharsis.
This poem is inspired by all the tragic heroes and heroines who have brought me face to face with my own hubris... - H.P. Atilano
My Catharsis
Because you owe me my catharsis, you,
Beautiful Ones, must die.
For as long as your inevitable fall
is an obligatory part of your story,
You will be my heroes: inherently good,
yet flawed.
My life-mentors, teach me empathy;
let hubris take its course
And teach me humility -- that even a god-
like beauty like you could fall.
My heroes, for you I will carve epitaphs
to immortalize you:
"Here lies Oedipus, King of Thebes, blind
'til the very end..."
"The Moor of Venice herein rests; Deceit and
Gullibility, his only friends..."
"Antigone, defender of the dead; devoted sister,
alone in death..."
...and I will save my tears for the epiphany,
for when Truth strikes its deadly blow;
...and I will shed those tears to wash off my
own hubris to give your death some worth.
Author's Note: Presumably, the persona here is addressing the tragic heroes in a sort of dramatic monologue and gives his/her definition of catharsis.
3 comments:
this one's really true of human nature. knowing that someone suffers a plight worse than ours is always an effective pacifier, giving our egoes a good stroking. afterall, it's these flaws in our heroes that keep us hooked to them. or so i think.
from robert:
that's what i like about the greek or roman myths - they remind us that no one is perfect, not even a god; very different from the Bible, but i cannot choose which of them define a god better.
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