Guile

 

Nutty in

he went berserk like a bull

gored the tall

poked the short.

Sweet out

he glistened with his glitz

bowed to the old

a belly laugh with the young.

Like water dabbled in

unstable guile

like a chasm covered with a golden flannel

attractive hoax.

Man eye cool muddy inside

maniacal master of words

benighted fellas

believe he is benign.

This poem is a satire about the lifestyle of a person. This poem speaks of those people who live a double life. They act like demons when inside or with people they are close to but they act like angels when outside with people that do not know a lot about them.

The first stanza starts with ‘nutty in’ meaning crazy while inside or with people they are close with. ‘He went berserk like a bull’ here, their behaviour is compared to that of a bull that ‘gores or pokes’ with its horns.

The second stanza describes such people as ‘sweet outside’ they shine or glisten with their attractiveness, respect the old and laugh with the young.

The third stanza compares them and their hypocrisies as ‘water dabbled in’ such water becomes unstable while guile means deceit. They are further compared to a chasm or a pit covered with a ‘golden’ flannel. All meaning pretence and deceit.

The fourth/last stanza starts with ‘man eye cool muddy inside’ meaning they look good and act good on the outside but they are ‘muddy’ or tricky or dirty inside. They are ‘maniacal masters of words’ they are wicked and know how to use words. Benighted fellas are people that have been fooled by those deceitful people. They believe that these deceitful people are benign.

The poem is made up of four stanzas with each stanza having four lines (a quatrain).

The dominant poetic device is simile - line 2, lines 9 & 11.