No Vacancy
#4
(03-14-2016, 12:10 PM)dukealien Wrote:  There is an original idea here, and it makes an interesting poem. The basic idea and structure could be tightened up and expressed better - edit, edit!  My central suggestion is to think how what you've said could be misinterpreted (see details below), and perhaps since you're semi-rhyming, regularize the meter - but not completely.

(03-14-2016, 09:53 AM)TonyMahoney Wrote:  Loneliness owns everything,  Nice opening - comma is not needed.
in the hearts of crippled men.   Problematic word choice ("crippled") - I got the idea of mentally limited, but aside from being an SJW-disapproved word, in this context it could be  misinterpreted as physically crippled... which is not what you mean.  Consider, for example, "in the crippled hearts of men" to eliminate "crippled men."
Walking down the path of fools,
back through what could have been.   Added unstressed syllable, OK.
Every word unspoken,   Missing a whole metric foot here from your established 4:3:4:3 system - can one be added?
an indictment from on high.
No consolation to be found,  No comma needed - enjambment working here
in understanding why.   This is an important line - can it be made stronger?
Of course you know it's all your fault,   I do this (shift from third-person observations to addressing an undefined "you") - it's natural in my part of the country.  But I'm also criticized for it, so perhaps you could try sticking to the observational voice.
there's no one else to blame.
The guilt is yours alone to bare,  bear
as is the crushing shame.  "as is" a bit archaic - rephrase to more modern?
The others used to come around,   no comma needed
and you felt more alone.  
They might not have wasted their time,   Metric problem here - substitution at "wasted" does not read easily, IMHO
had any of them known.
All the things you could have done,
the changes that weren't made.   This line is a little weak - try it with active instead of passive voice
The friends that left you far behind,
the bitterness that stayed.  Good line, like the varied spellings that make the rhyme.
All the chances you won't take,
so certain you can't win.  The last several pairs of lines sentence fragments - can they be, or be combined into, a complete sentence?
Loneliness owns everything,  Same comment as on the first lines.  Repeating them here is good, rounding out the message - make them your best possible!
in the hearts of crippled men.
Please don't take the above as harsher than it's meant to be:  each suggestion is just that, to be accepted or discarded at will.   Other ideas might be to make it frankly confessional - even if it's not you that you're discussing, put yourself in that other's place - or entirely commentary (no discourse to the "you" of the second half of the poem).

In summary, I like and can empathize with what's expressed here.  Tighten it  up and give it more bite:  "Loneliness can kill you deader than a .357 magnum."  (Officer Wintergreen, Electra-Glide in Blue)
Excellent crit. Balanced and germane. Well done duke.Mod.
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Messages In This Thread
No Vacancy - by TonyMahoney - 03-14-2016, 09:53 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by dukealien - 03-14-2016, 12:10 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by TonyMahoney - 03-14-2016, 01:10 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by tectak - 03-14-2016, 04:04 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by Mattp - 03-17-2016, 09:58 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by REW - 03-20-2016, 09:09 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by jameso - 03-20-2016, 03:29 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by Matthew McKeown - 03-20-2016, 06:31 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by sithcat - 03-28-2016, 11:59 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by Jasper - 03-28-2016, 03:28 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by whatisay-whatifeel - 04-06-2016, 11:08 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by shaan - 04-12-2016, 12:19 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by FallenPoet - 04-12-2016, 08:31 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by taratica - 04-12-2016, 08:48 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by LunaDeLore - 04-16-2016, 01:15 AM
RE: No Vacancy - by BecktheDog - 05-13-2016, 09:47 PM
RE: No Vacancy - by Caleb Murdock - 05-17-2016, 03:52 AM



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