The System
Joe Strickland 1986 (Hobbysville, SC)
When pain is chronic,
It's hard to keep up resistance,
It chips away at our security,
Until we become something else entirely
A stranger to ourselves.
The cruelty then creeps up,
A way to protect oneself from the constant sting,
But something dies inside of us,
A light that once shone brightly begins to dim,
As a fading star.
It's not just individuals,
But the very system of the world,
Built on a lie from the very beginning,
A notion of worth defined by wealth,
By social placement.
The rich stay rich,
The poor stop trying,
The middle class dwindles,
The system benefits those
Who understand the game.
But what about justice and fairness?
Where is the compassion and care?
It's all about the bottom line,
And those on top could give a shit.
And we keep voting the same.
So we struggle and we fight,
To hold on to our humanity,
To keep that spark alive,
In this cold and cruel society.
That's the system.
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Written on June 06, 2023
Submitted by JoeStrickland on June 06, 2023
- 1:01 min read
- 5 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | XXAAX XBCXX DXBXX XBDXE CXXXE XAXAX |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 917 |
Words | 201 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 |
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"The System" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 23 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/160776/the-system>.
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