What Can We Do?
from blank gun silencer; 1994
What Can We Do? - meaning Summary
Humanity as Sleeping Beast
Bukowski presents Humanity as a sleeping, dangerous mass prone to brutality and self-preservation. He advises distancing oneself from collective impulses, treating social forces as poisonous, while warning they protect themselves with laws and violence. The speaker admits he has not escaped the mass but persists in trying, framing escape as a subtle, personal task. The poem ends with a fragile hope to "obtain my life" before death.
Read Complete Analysesat their best, there is gentleness in Humanity. some understanding and, at times, acts of courage but all in all it is a mass, a glob that doesn't have too much. it is like a large animal deep in sleep and almost nothing can awaken it. when activated it's best at brutality, selfishness, unjust judgments, murder. what can we do with it, this Humanity? nothing. avoid the thing as much as possible. treat it as you would anything poisonous, vicious and mindless. but be careful. it has enacted laws to protect itself from you. it can kill you without cause. and to escape it you must be subtle. few escape. it's up to you to figure a plan. I have met nobody who has escaped. I have met some of the great and famous but they have not escaped for they are only great and famous within Humanity. I have not escaped but I have not failed in trying again and again. before my death I hope to obtain my life.
Feel free to be first to leave comment.