In the desert...

[goatunit.livejournal.com]

In the desert
I saw a creature, naked, bestial,
Who, squatting upon the ground,
Held his heart in his hands,
And ate of it.
I said: "Is it good, friend?"
"It is bitter - bitter," he answered;
"But I like it
Because it is bitter,
And because it is my heart."

-Stephen Crane

Comments

[moireach.livejournal.com]

You know, I've never really gotten this poem, and I wish I did. Maybe you could tell me why you like it or what you think it means?

[goatunit.livejournal.com]

Well, I think that Crane is talking about the way that many people feed their own suffering. The creature likes that his heart is bitter, it enjoys its own misery and resentment. It wallows in its bitterness. I think that may also be why Crane refers to it as a creature - he may feel that such people fail to be human.

That's just what I get from it though.