blog number three

When I read Bukowski it shows me that writing comes in many forms. There isn`t one correct way to write and the true judge of a writer comes from the emotions he generates from the reader. He takes you to a place, where you don`t notice you are reading a book, but actually think you are viewing life. It takes you on a journey through human insecurities, vulnerabilities, and just plain old raw emotions. It brings you where you don`t want to go, but you keep on reading anyway. The greatest weakness writers can have is caring what others think of them, because once they care about that, they edit themselves to a point where their voice is no longer their own. Bukowski has no such problem.


In his poem "About the mail lately" he writes "I have never been too interested in living, it has been hard work, slave labor, still is"(pg173). This poem demonstrates his belief that life is not only a journey, but a painful one. It is a statement that very few writers would write and a statement that is certainly not uplifting. However it shows you the true Bukowski. It allows you to see how he views life, that life is just being a slave to existence.

Bukowski writes in his poem "Sunbeam" "Sometimes when you are in hell and it is continuous you get a bit giddy"(187). This shows who Bukowski is as a writer and as a soul. He is one who craves the fires' of hell. He wants pain and wants to show the reader that he can survive it. He wants to be burned and come back for more. Bukowski loved boxing and often went to see fights in L.A. I am sure what he loved about it was the ability of boxers to take pain and keep on fighting. Bukowski continues to fight years after his heart beat has stopped.

To learn more about Charles Bukowski visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Bukowski

I already wrote some about "Proper Credentials are needed to join"(PG207) in my first blog. However I would like to go into more detail of it. In this poem he rants against the world. He admits to his addiction, but he sees it as a sign of valor, instead of a sign of weakness. He points out that he started drinking at the age of 11. This is his way of saying I am still here. He rants about how drinking has put him in jail some 15 times, but he wants you to know he is still here.The pain is nothing to him, but the toll that it cost  to live life.He claims that those who give up drinking were never really drinkers. That they are quitters and people pretending that they know what its like to have lived. I don`t agree with this. Addictions are very hard to overcome and anyone who can move past them should be admired. However I love this poem, because he really shows you the darkness of addictions. He speaks in the voice of the addiction and will not back down.I reflect on all those who have fallen prey to addictions, and pray for all those fighting them.

 His poem "Silly dammed thing anyhow"he writes about the lost of a animal.He states that"it ate everything we did and we often watched tv together."He paints a picture of it being part of the family. Then comes the sad part" one evening we came home and it was gone." The animal did not just die, but was murdered by people in his neighborhood. When he finds the dog he writes what he sees, "There was a sign above its severed throat: we don`t want things like this in our neighborhood." In reading this you assume the animal is a dog, but he never states that. I think about my dog that died and how it was like you losing a part of the family. I wonder what was it about this animal that made the neighbors so upset. I guess with Bukowski who knows, he might of had a tiger living with him.

In the poem "Moth to the flame" he writes about his dislike of Dylan Thomas. This is a very short poem, with very little meaning. It is not even a half of page. It ends with"sucker-punched by his own vanity and the accolades of fools, he pissed on the centuries and they pissed back all over him." This shows Bukowski has very little respect for him as a writer and as a person. The one thing about this poem that stands out to me is Bukowski`s hatred for the establishment.They think Dylan Thomas is good, therefore Bukowski see`s his fame as a creation of the establishment.  I think part of this has to do with Bukowski being looked down on by some of the academic community, while Dylan Thomas is more accepted.

In his poem "7 come 11"(213) he writes about the creative process of making his poems. He states "Upstream through it all to end up sitting here in front of this machine with cigarette dangling and drink at hand." He is talking about the hard process of life. He is fighting upstream trying to stay afloat in life, just so he can write about it on his typewriter. The first think that comes to my mind, is thank God for computers. I would hate to have to use typewriters. The next thing that comes to my mind is how he lives to write. "Just to stay alive and to type these words with no net below." This statement makes me go back to what I wrote in blog number one, there is no net for a writer. A writer puts it all out there and must have no shame and then they either sink or swim.