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Easy Guide to Far-sightedness
Original poem 'Far-sightedness' in my page (simplified version in its comment section!)
Unlike my last poem guide MatS, this is not a series of questions but the dissection of uncommon metaphors and reflecting on society whereas it still focuses on societal analysis and less on poetic devices.
'Time, she devours
whatever height we towers'
1. Time as the Jungian Devouring Mother archetype (consumes the child psychologically with selfish love, permanently making them reliant, incompetent infants)
- referencing from time being portrayed as a mother giving birth to civilization
a) Possessive: prevents independence
- devouring height, the symbol of growth and maturity
- the irony as the more time passes, the more problems and conflicts became hidden, leading to lessons forgotten and a somewhat cyclic history; and upon accumulating, the flaws can become detrimental to us
- referencing from the societal trend of victimization and dismissing power, for instance the privileged victimize on white genocide, anti-rich prejudice and cancel culture, appealing to emotional insecurity
- more or less about the long-standing tradition of morals before rights: one must prove that they have morals hence a soul (different versions in different cultures), and only then can rights and leverages come into use with the moral definition, for instance, if you're a minority, you may be seen as less human and receive less healthcare and welfare - as morals are often defined by the powerful and majority, there is often pressure to conform to receive more shares of resources
b) Over-protective: devours the children’s potential and protects them out of their own competence
- devouring the tower symbolizes how time eats away physical prowess and society's ability to cope, old or young of 'her children'
- our society is somewhat dispersed by time favoring of the old; they didn't have it easy, but they begun early and when compared with later generations had more leverage to them with an unequal platform, hence time's favoritism devours the young's potential while also numbing the old's sensitivity and adaptability to changing environments
2. Height as ivory towers
- means being in privileged seclusion with impractical, often escapist attitude from the facts and practicalities, most evident in echo chambers in social media, for instance, climate denial
- higher class obsession with ideology, and ignorance in practical affairs, resulting in segregation and inappropriate policies in leadership, for instance, the US's war against drug and terrorism failing and resulting in most likely the opposite of their objectives
'the thinly masked glass
the classes in mass
Truman's show?'
3. Glass as greenhouse: dual meaning
- referring to masked global warming, climate denial and political inaction instead of breaking the greenhouse, symbolizing the accumulation of greenhouse gases
- us as protected greenery inside the greenhouse; glass symbolizing the fragility and delicacy of our situation
4. Glass as social experiment
- simulation of classes on Marxist theory, as cultural and social capital are abitrary social constructs, upon the scrutiny of metaphysics, seemed delusional; hence glass represents the fragile ego protection between self deceit and reality, or classes which people are separated and looking at their own hated reflection on the glass
- resembling The Truman Show whose protagonist was immersed in a media landscape of delusions and values serving the interests of the powerful; glass symbolizing the television screen which he was observed upon; all framed in a glass in a controlled test represents that he is regarded as test subject instead of human, relating to social media where people's lives are posted everyday and certain minority might become the target of venting in the name of 'experimenting'
'to the Valley of Rubicon'
5. Crossing the Rubicon: means beyond the point of no return for taking an irreversible risk, referencing from Julius Caesar starts a war by crossing Rubicon, a small stream, that can be interpreted politically in society
'Far-sightedness'
6. Far-sightedness: dual meaning
- a physical vision condition clearly seeing object at distance, but not up close; my attempt at unreliable narration, posing as irony against the narrator who can only see the future and love from afar - hence later when he describes togetherness through the rain/mist, it is delusional and pitiful, as his sight, symbolizing the love in his mind, dissolves along with distance and time
- synonymous to foresight, the ability to predict what will happen in the future; another irony is that if the narrator weeps and mourns for the future and cares less about the present, then what is the basis of the prediction? Is it not a self-fulfilling prophecy?
I hope you enjoyed the short guide. I omitted some metaphors that you might know, but if I left anything behind, make sure to let me know:)
© Elvin
Unlike my last poem guide MatS, this is not a series of questions but the dissection of uncommon metaphors and reflecting on society whereas it still focuses on societal analysis and less on poetic devices.
'Time, she devours
whatever height we towers'
1. Time as the Jungian Devouring Mother archetype (consumes the child psychologically with selfish love, permanently making them reliant, incompetent infants)
- referencing from time being portrayed as a mother giving birth to civilization
a) Possessive: prevents independence
- devouring height, the symbol of growth and maturity
- the irony as the more time passes, the more problems and conflicts became hidden, leading to lessons forgotten and a somewhat cyclic history; and upon accumulating, the flaws can become detrimental to us
- referencing from the societal trend of victimization and dismissing power, for instance the privileged victimize on white genocide, anti-rich prejudice and cancel culture, appealing to emotional insecurity
- more or less about the long-standing tradition of morals before rights: one must prove that they have morals hence a soul (different versions in different cultures), and only then can rights and leverages come into use with the moral definition, for instance, if you're a minority, you may be seen as less human and receive less healthcare and welfare - as morals are often defined by the powerful and majority, there is often pressure to conform to receive more shares of resources
b) Over-protective: devours the children’s potential and protects them out of their own competence
- devouring the tower symbolizes how time eats away physical prowess and society's ability to cope, old or young of 'her children'
- our society is somewhat dispersed by time favoring of the old; they didn't have it easy, but they begun early and when compared with later generations had more leverage to them with an unequal platform, hence time's favoritism devours the young's potential while also numbing the old's sensitivity and adaptability to changing environments
2. Height as ivory towers
- means being in privileged seclusion with impractical, often escapist attitude from the facts and practicalities, most evident in echo chambers in social media, for instance, climate denial
- higher class obsession with ideology, and ignorance in practical affairs, resulting in segregation and inappropriate policies in leadership, for instance, the US's war against drug and terrorism failing and resulting in most likely the opposite of their objectives
'the thinly masked glass
the classes in mass
Truman's show?'
3. Glass as greenhouse: dual meaning
- referring to masked global warming, climate denial and political inaction instead of breaking the greenhouse, symbolizing the accumulation of greenhouse gases
- us as protected greenery inside the greenhouse; glass symbolizing the fragility and delicacy of our situation
4. Glass as social experiment
- simulation of classes on Marxist theory, as cultural and social capital are abitrary social constructs, upon the scrutiny of metaphysics, seemed delusional; hence glass represents the fragile ego protection between self deceit and reality, or classes which people are separated and looking at their own hated reflection on the glass
- resembling The Truman Show whose protagonist was immersed in a media landscape of delusions and values serving the interests of the powerful; glass symbolizing the television screen which he was observed upon; all framed in a glass in a controlled test represents that he is regarded as test subject instead of human, relating to social media where people's lives are posted everyday and certain minority might become the target of venting in the name of 'experimenting'
'to the Valley of Rubicon'
5. Crossing the Rubicon: means beyond the point of no return for taking an irreversible risk, referencing from Julius Caesar starts a war by crossing Rubicon, a small stream, that can be interpreted politically in society
'Far-sightedness'
6. Far-sightedness: dual meaning
- a physical vision condition clearly seeing object at distance, but not up close; my attempt at unreliable narration, posing as irony against the narrator who can only see the future and love from afar - hence later when he describes togetherness through the rain/mist, it is delusional and pitiful, as his sight, symbolizing the love in his mind, dissolves along with distance and time
- synonymous to foresight, the ability to predict what will happen in the future; another irony is that if the narrator weeps and mourns for the future and cares less about the present, then what is the basis of the prediction? Is it not a self-fulfilling prophecy?
I hope you enjoyed the short guide. I omitted some metaphors that you might know, but if I left anything behind, make sure to let me know:)
© Elvin
