“The poet is the vehicle used by poetry so that it can touch us. From the inside out.” So true are these words. Sam Hamill’s, “The Necessity to Speak” is a story of how we as people relate to the world around us, the people in it, the way we look at ourselves and each other, the way we live our lives, and what we deem “acceptable” in society. I must admit that I have lived a somewhat “sheltered” life. Choosing to ignore issues that are most uncomfortable or embarrassing. I have contributed to Mr. Hamill’s idea that “we as a society establish acceptable levels of violence”. I have experienced a form of violence. Sometimes it is easier to be silent although I do believe as Mr. Hamill notes “our silence grants violence permission”. “The violence we learn at home we take with us everywhere”. Women, nor children, deserve to be victims of violence. Why do we feel compassion for the violator who was once violated as a child? Because our society has accepted this.
I found “The Woman Hanging From The Thirteenth Floor Window” very relatable. Such emotion was written in those words. After reading Sam Hamill’s words, and those of the “Poetry of Witness”, it is clear that the authors all have a strong emotional tale to tell. Poets “are faced with the difficult task of telling people what they already know an do not want to hear”.
image: www.thedrunkenboat.com/hamillview.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violence_against_women
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