No Critic, No Poet

[Pendragon]

No Critic, No Poet

A poet without a critic
Is a poet without a friend--
For now none dare to tell him the truth
When his poems do not make the grade,
They have lost confidence in him and helping him improve.
They silently stand and watch the wreckage of his poetry
Slide toward the cliffs of despair,
And none will throw him a rope of encouragement...
Do they now fear that he will explode?
That he thinks himself perfect?
If he did he would not write his poems for all to read.
He would with pride consuming him only write for payment,
Figuring that if you wanted to read his poems, pay for them!
But he knows he isn't perfect by a long shot
And he longs for a critic to take time for him
Don't we all...

Pendragon
©1/30/08

[PrinceMyshkin]

I hope you are not feeling neglected and aggrieved - as I would feel if few or none commented on my submissions. It might be because you post many and people may be taking your excellence for granted.

I for one loved the theme of this, that a poet without a critic is like a man without a friend...though it prompted a flippant thought on my part: What about a poet with two, three... a hundred critics?!

[ampoule]

I'm a boring critic...I like it, I love it, it moves me, good job, the same old thing from me. But I guess even that is better than nothing. Sometimes I read in a hurry and then think later that I have commented. At first I didn't expect comments but now that I've received some, I have to admit, I like it. I need to do better with our new people too.

[aashishameya]

good one Pen...truth is always biitter..but we need it for betterment....and thank u for being my critic

[dibyendra]

No Critic, No Poet

A poet without a critic
Is a poet without a friend--
For now none dare to tell him the truth
When his poems do not make the grade,
They have lost confidence in him and helping him improve.
They silently stand and watch the wreckage of his poetry
Slide toward the cliffs of despair,
And none will throw him a rope of encouragement...
Do they now fear that he will explode?
That he thinks himself perfect?
If he did he would not write his poems for all to read.
He would with pride consuming him only write for payment,
Figuring that if you wanted to read his poems, pay for them!
But he knows he isn't perfect by a long shot
And he longs for a critic to take time for him
Don't we all...

Pendragon
©1/30/08

Dear Pen,

No doubt, you're a man with great imaginations, feelings, and have already gathered profound knowledge in the area of literature and they are all there while browsing through this forum. I guess, it's because everyone has their own interest and maybe all of them don't get time to respond to every thread. I try to read most of the poetry here in this forum but most of the time I cannot grasp what that poetry is trying to say.

This poem is really moving and I can feel the pain of the poet here.

A poet without a critic
Is a poet without a friend

I really liked the above lines and it's a truth as well.

They silently stand and watch the wreckage of his poetry
Slide toward the cliffs of despair,
And none will throw him a rope of encouragement...

The above lines are really moving Pen.

But he knows he isn't perfect by a long shot
And he longs for a critic to take time for him
Don't we all...

Yes we all long for critic. All of us here seek for appreciation. All we need is patience and should understand each other.

Everyone here loves you Pen and keep up your good work.

Love,
Dibyendra

[kiz_paws]

I enjoyed the poem, Pen. What I really love about your poetry is that you so capably voice your thoughts through prose, something that I really struggle with. You can tell a scary story, write a whimsical story about a mousie who steals, all those birthday poems you so generously create for your friends here, the list goes on.

This poem tells me of your pain that you feel that sometimes your poetry is overlooked. Please understand that often, as the others mentioned above, there is much going on in the forums, and it is difficult to catch up on it all, on a daily basis, even if I do get to have the computer all evening (sometimes not, though).

I really think that Dibyendra very tenderly made the points that I thought, too -- I cannot add anything more that he has not said (thanks, Dibyendra!).

And yes, we do all love you, Pen. Don't forget it.

p.s. How dare I critique your work when (1) I am fumbling in the dark myself; and (2) you poetry stands miles ahead of the pack?

[Tuninks]

Nicely done Pen! Keep it up, I'd give you a high five but there's something called a "monitor" in the way... Weird...

[symphony]

I enjoyed the poem, Pen. What I really love about your poetry is that you so capably voice your thoughts through prose, something that I really struggle with. You can tell a scary story, write a whimsical story about a mousie who steals, all those birthday poems you so generously create for your friends here, the list goes on.

I second that.


Whenever u post a poem, what exactly comes to my mind is- "And another penned down." It's great how u can cover so much in your poems. Thats what explains it. When people strive for words, poets play with them. So thats where all the words go, eh? Thats why i never find the right words, how will i when they're always with u?!