Tell me why I shouldn't smash this stocking frame!
Tell me why I should let machines replace me!
Tell me why I shouldn't live life the same!
All you mutter is 'new age, poverty'
Please.
Go on, I'm listening, though I thought you should know
That my father would burn and would kill
So'd my grandfather, grand-grandfather, grander than that
If they saw this outright war on skill
My skill is my life, and it's been that for aeons
It is a fire that should not go out
And these workers, to man my machinal replacements?
Their 'skills' left them begging about
You say 'unemployment'. Haha, how funny
Bread must be worked for—or can we laze around now?
You say we must be free from aristocracy
And yet to 'progressives' I must bow
The machines are more efficient—is that all you can say?
So I suppose we should clone everyone for efficiency's sake!
And according to your vision, there'd be no problem with that
After all, there isn't that much at stake:
Creativity and orignality! Let it burn, let it burn
This is a revolution, 'cause it's the people's turn
Morals and humanity! Let it burn, let it burn
This is a revolution, or plain nonsense, as you'll learn
Or not.
So fine! Strip me of my very self
But let me burn brighter and higher than dawn
For I want it to be known that my fire burned brightest
Before you poured water, and then it was gone.
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AN: There are two parts to this AN. First, a historical note. The Luddites were a group of English artisans who opposed the Industrial Revolution. This poem is in the voice of a Luddite speaking to a supporter of the Revolution. This poetry collection has included a lot of violent revolutions, but it's important to remember that there were some more peaceful revolutions that also changed the world, like the Industrial Revolution. Secondly, it's time for thanking! Even though this book has less than two-hundred reads, it still means a lot to me. So thank you to everyone who's voted, commented and bothered to read these poems. :)
Inspiration: The Luddites. I like being the devil's advocate in debates, so I thought of some arguments that they might use that aren't totally unreasonable. Turns out, there are actually a decent number and some of them draw uncomfortable parallels to modern times. Perfect writing material. And thus this poem was born.
YOU ARE READING
Anarchy
PoetryAnarchy. A swirl of topics: emotions, allusions to history, social issues... And somewhere in the maelstrom comes forth rhymes and prose. Note: If you can't be bothered to read all the poems (quite understandably), I've starred the better ones.
