Review of A.E.Stallings’ poem ‘The doll house’

 

Review of A.E.Stallings’ poem ‘The doll house’

Link for the poem ----https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/browse?contentId=41133

I request the readers to read the poem first from the link above and then read my review. Thanks.

The poem expresses straightaway the content. There is no need to elaborate on the intended meaning of any sentence of the poem. The poem’s impact is through what the poet left unsaid. Some questions kindled within as we read the poem.

 

Is it really ‘my tiny world’ whenever I shrink and shut my doors to the outer world?

 

How far am I different and unique from the people who are fellow beings, my family, my peers, my society or my group?

 

When I find solace is solitude am I really aloof?

 

When I mingle with them, socialize with them or join some celebration or partying or other do I feel the happiness or contentment I had been longing for?

 

Whenever I transact/ communicate with someone or the other don’t I ape someone else?

 

Is there in anything I can identify as my ‘individuality’ that makes my life distinct?

 

Do I now carry a quest or did I ever carry one that can open doors to what is the purpose of my life?

 

Were all the toys / dolls and my fantastic world around them a rehearsal?

 

These questions are mostly abstract. The answer might as well be one. Nonetheless, when I find the answer I may not find someone looking for it; he might be looking for the answer he has in his mind or the one that would enhance his status in the crowd.

 

The society out there is mostly no different from our childhood dolls and the fantastic world around them. The warmth and security to hold one another’s hands in the fog of illusions is my comfort zone. None of us venture anywhere beyond the fog in quest of light.

 

This poem is very subtle.