II. Dennis’ prompt: Giving the Abstract a Voice
For this prompt, write a poem that gives an abstract idea a personality, a voice, and a life of its own.
Choose something we cannot physically touch: Destiny, Time, Hope, Justice, Fear, Memory, Regret, Silence, Truth or any other abstract concept that interests you.
Imagine your chosen concept as a character. What might it say? How might it behave? What does it do when nobody is watching? Does it enjoy its work? Does it have ambitions, habits, complaints, prejudices or regrets? Does it understand how its actions affect people?
You are especially encouraged to draw on your own culture, language, mythology, folklore or personal experience to give your character a distinctive identity and voice.
Your personification can be comic, tragic, sinister, tender, absurd, philosophical or anything in between. Perhaps Time is tired of being blamed for everything. Maybe Hope is stubborn. Perhaps Memory keeps things it was asked to throw away.
You might write a dramatic monologue in which the concept speaks directly to us, a conversation between two competing abstractions, a sonnet, an allegory, a satire or something completely different. These are only possibilities, not restrictions.
***
OUT THERE
There you sit, staring at the news channel, not taking anything in, sort of in a trance because it’s too much to take in, it can’t be real. The phone rings, “oh hello Fran. No I’m not busy, tomorrow? Taking the bus you say, a protest? I couldn’t possibly go. I’m not twenty anymore, Fran, and neither are you! I don’t think it’s safe out there. What? Of course I vote, but I’m not going out there, I’m voting by mail. You’ll drive me? No, I’m not going out there. I’m not protesting either. It’s too dangerous out there. Of course I agree. Of course I’m upset about it. Don’t talk to me like that Fran, I vote and I see the news. I know what’s going on. I said no, goodbye.” Turns the volume back up.
***
W3 Prompt #235: Wea’ve Written Weekly
