Analysis of Ocean



barely six months in
i lay down to read your
fifteen pounds of pages
i am laying
am i lying
under you
i seek to learn
some eternal,
carnal,
ancient truth
instead all i can see are ants
being pushed across a white desert
so i squash one with a wet finger
and the blood smears over the poem's title
mixed with a little peanut butter
breakfast time

a yearning to relate
leads me across the desert myself
an expedition with no water
i stumble unknowing on the white sand
until your hand rises from the page-puddle
and grips my fleshy flat heart
thumb into the aorta
like in biology class
when hearts were on sleeves and tables
and death was just something
that happened to other people
and sheep

now death, like water, is everywhere
i never could run very fast
but now i can only run backwards
like dreams that are secret nightmares
a sea of ants spewing from your throat into mine

i slam your wordless mouth shut
because everything can be fine
and i can still be good
if i keep the book closed.


Scheme XXXAAXXBBXXXCBCX XXCXBXXXXABX XXXXD XDXX
Poetic Form
Metre 10110 111111 011110 1110 1110 101 1111 1010 10 101 01111111 101010110 111110110 0011100110 110101010 101 010101 11010101 10101110 1100101011 01111010110 0111011 1010010 1001001 11011010 011110 11011010 01 11110110 11011101 111110110 1111101 011110111011 1111011 0110111 011111 111011
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 995
Words 194
Sentences 1
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 16, 12, 5, 4
Lines Amount 37
Letters per line (avg) 22
Words per line (avg) 5
Letters per stanza (avg) 199
Words per stanza (avg) 47

About this poem

This poem describes the imposter syndrome I experience writing poetry after reading the work of great writers such as Ocean Vuong. Reading some of his work triggered my own grief, melancholy, and the desperation that comes with the pursuit of constant progress, and sometimes the feelings are so gripping, so overwhelming, that you can't help but shut the book and sit and contemplate for a while.

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Submitted by BobiSteel on July 20, 2022

Modified on March 23, 2023

58 sec read
50

Bobi Steel

Having grown up in the suburbs of London, I previously worked as a fashion journalist and began writing poetry as a pastime during the COVID lockdowns. I am in the process of relocating to Montreal, QC, and so am spending more time recently writing poetry that deals with these emotions of melancholy and upheaval as well as hope for the future. more…

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    "Ocean" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/133659/ocean>.

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