The Depth of Words

Dan Albergotti’s poem “Bad Language” drew me in with its first line, “We fear to speak, and silence coats the night air.” I love when writers use such phrases. They are immediately effective because I can relate to what the speaker is saying. I have experienced such a silence, one that I become drenched in, enveloped, encased.

I love the vulnerability the speaker reveals: “Don’t leave me alone with self- / knowledge.” I often feel the same way. I think often writers cannot express their feelings except in writing, but even in writing we experience insecurity when others read what we have to say. How then can we tell others our desires? “Understand me,” the speaker says. Is this is a plea or a demand? With the complications of language the speaker illustrates, I like to think it is both.

One Reply to “The Depth of Words”

  1. I loved your reading of the first line Maya. Silence is one of those feelings that is all-consuming thing, and it can be comfortable or uncomfortable. A really has to have a command over language to describe silence, and Albergotti does. In ten words, he gives you the exact feeling of this type of silence. It’s fascinating.

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