Welcome to a new ongoing topic for A&E where we uncover pieces created by different artists on campus and uncover what goes on in their minds when they are creating. Our first feature is a piece by Andrew Pak (sophomore, music), a poet who we interviewed last semester. Linked is his interview if you want to read more about him.
Go ahead and look over the following piece, and read the detailed analysis after. Enjoy!
___
“it doesn’t make a sound”
while he stares outside the window
on his little one-man perch
he sees the people gather around,
but he doesn’t make a sound.
why does he covet the masses?
while impassive eyes search the earth
for something (someone) to satisfy his heart/
he plasters his mind with generic wallpaper
and calls it a piece of art/
it doesn’t matter! he mirrors their faces
and lets out a laugh,
but he doesn’t make a sound.
a vortex of circular screams
echoes in his cavernous brain/
they pound at their prison in panic/
they stretch at the seams to escape/
he finally parts his lips to speak,
but he doesn’t make a sound.
maybe one day he’ll fade away
nothing to tether him down/
how can the voiceless prove they exist?
trapped inside an ossified cage,
his paper-thin lungs start tearing apart
/by lonely years they’re drowned/
and when his bloody heart shrivels up,
it doesn’t make a sound.
Andrew’s analysis:
This poem is a reflection on the feeling of voicelessness, the feeling of wanting to speak out but failing to do so, and the kind of existential dread that accompanies this feeling. The piece as a whole is divided into four stanzas, each unified by the closing line "__ doesn't make a sound."
The subject is someone who is caught in the paradox of wanting to fit in with everyone yet also searching for something deeper as well. I experimented with imagery and phonetic devices to try to illustrate the struggle better–see the imagery of the cave as well as the repetition of plosives in "pound at their prison in panic" and "parts his lips to speak."
The final stanza poses a question–how can the voiceless prove they exist? I think to make your mark on the world, you have to stand for something (whether it be an ideology, lifestyle, or general worldview). This whole poem in a sense is a self-criticism of my quietness and difficulty to assertively stand behind my beliefs. It closes with a cautionary look at the future: if voicelessness continues, one's death itself will have no sound or impact on the world.
____
Hopefully, we can all learn something about ourselves from this piece. If you want to experience more writing from Andrew, you can check out his website and catch him at future AU Scriptorium events!
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