The Test

[Mario33]

Sometimes David's poems leave me scratching my head as to what he is conveying.

For instance, does anyone have an interpretation for his poem "The Test" ?
...................

The Test

How will you meet the demon of ignorance?

I will enter the church and go to the altar
and kneel in my bridal gown

And there in my grief,
I will wait and wait
for the touch of his hand in mine

He will not fail to come.

[Karimac]

Hi,
Well like a lot of good poems this one has many facets and will mean different things to different people.
Here's what I got out of it;

Among other things, It seems to be a poem protesting the kind of faith that encourages blind acceptance. There is spiritual and religious imagery of the demon, church, altar, and bridal gown (which implies purity and sacred ritual). One of the things I did to try and understand it better was to rewrite the poem using opposite imagery, it's an interesting way to sometimes get to another layer of a poem, such as:

How will you meet the angel of perception?
(for me the opposite of ignorance is perception)

I will enter the wilderness and go towards the horizon.
(a church is a contained purified sacred place where everything has its place and in a way its very linear, with distinct boundaries, while the wilderness is a place of the chaotic unknown, where forces mix.
An altar is once again a contained space for ritual, the horizon represents limitless vision)

and stand naked
(a traditional bridal gown is a statement of purity, also wealth, and that the person is undergoing transition in status, it is a outward material expression, The bridal gown defines the person wearing versus standing naked with no material thing to define, protect, or hide)

and there in my joy
I will seek and seek
(note the sadness of waiting versus the joy of seeking, also passivity versus action)

for the awareness of his presence
(touching hands in David's poem has a seductive sweetness to it, but it is the impermanent physical versus the eternal spiritual connection)

he has always been with me
(this one it took me awhile to figure what was the opposite of failing to come. Well for something to come it has to be away. For me David's poem suggests mournful futile wait. The passive person awaits discovery, unfailingly hopeful in their faith, yet there is a sense that the outcome is questionable, that the person is unfulfilled and unhappy. There is a falseness to the faith. In the opposing version the angel of awareness has always been there, it is the angel who waits to be discovered by the active seeker.

David's version is a much better poem because it is indirect and leads to questions. it's a conundrum, like life. I liked it alot because i had to think in opposing terms. With very few subtle words he was able to suggest some rich possible interpretations
There is an additional tension between male and female imagery. It could be a protest of the traditional subjugation of women, that they were and still are in many places, encouraged to be submissive, and kept in ignorance, blinded by religious practice (not naming any particular faiths here) The strong images of kneeling and waiting are submissive passive roles, traditionally assigned to women. But something that the poem also comments on is the role of choice. The person has chosen to enter into this passive submissive role. I think that the poem makes a strong comment on personal responsibility and how one can deceive oneself. One gravitates and clings to all kinds of things that promise temporary power: materialism, religious dogma, sexuality, etc. And in doing so chooses a kind of ignorance of deeper awareness. Notice the price that is paid, there is grief because the one who passively waits sacrifices their free will.

Something to look at in poems is energy. I look at verbs and what kind of energy do they suggest. Also images can give the reader different sense of energy. A bridal gown is bright, cheerful, but it is also constricting and has layers that hide the womans body. In a way it suppresses her true nature. She is cloaked by her status. You can have one word that suggests conflicting meaning. I'd be interested to know what others got out of the poem. I could way off from what the poet intended, that's the fun and frustration of poetry.
Okay enough said, hope that sparks lots of conversations about poetry.