The Mad Philosopher
The flabby wine-skin of his brain
Yields to some pathologic strain,
And voids from its unstored abysm
The driblet of an aphorism.
Commentary
Not quite hate poetry, but a delightful brand of misanthropy nonetheless…
APHORISM, n.: Predigested wisdom
(from “The Devil’s Dictionary”)
Note: abysm (n): an old spelling of ‘abyss’ ( the word has had five variants, abime, abysm, abysmus, abyssus, abyss; of which abyss remains asthe ordinary form, and abysm as archaic or poetic. – OED )
While Bierce was an all-round misanthrope and cynic, he appears to have reserved his greatest scorn for those he considered pretentious - the self proclaimedly artistic, philosophic and/or spiritual. Today’s poem is an excellent example; there is not even an attempt at wit, just pure vitriol.
The poem is, nonetheless, memorable for several reasons. Invective is always impressive if done well, of course, but there is more to it than that - the central image is very well chosen, with its picture of aphorisms dribbling out of a flabby wineskin, and the attendant suggestion of bibulousness on the philosopher’s part. The whole has a wonderfully epigrammatic quality that makes up in large measure for its lack of wit.
— Martin
Links
Biography of Bierce: poem #148
The Devil's Dictionary:
[broken link] http://rabi.phys.columbia.edu/~matmat/html/devils.html
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From the Wondering Minstrels mailing list, 1999–2008.
vivian · 30 August 2001
If you are very fond of this sort of thing, look out in second-hand bookshops for a little volume called “Invective and Abuse: An Anthology,” by Hugh Kingsmill, first published as two volumes in 1929-30, and then as a combined edition in 1944 (Eyre and Spottiswoode).
All the best,
Vivian