Moloch
by Jessica Mariglio
"Moloch"
i’ve given you all and now
now i lost it
who melted their wings against your heat
the best minds–
dirty dull degenerate
swollen drunk with apathy bloat
burning bruised, fallen apples
tumbling blissful
who combed through the city
barefoot eyes downcast–
sideways glances
don’t lookup.
i just wanna be pure
the old man in the tv set with a kids mouth
stilts of years of good hard labor
my generation–
who wander through universities
blindfolded
and over these haunted streets
apathetic
o Moloch
saucy pedantic prince of cement and steel
ain’t our erected idols enough for you
jab at the sad sky– does it
go red with our dead child’s blood?
or is that pomegranate running down
your chin?
who blew ritalin and coke to
turn into scared crows to hush up
their reeling minds for twelve hours
this guy was born with a sign
stamped on his forehead
sitting on the cold street corners of boston
breathing through his saxophone
“my god my god why have you
forsook
me”
o Allen
we are not save anymore
never were we ever
safe anymore don’t you know
this animal soup of time comes
hormone enhanced?
souped up
beat down
drink up
who listened to dylan and hoffman
because MTV said so
while standing by
observing quietly
the faraway slaughter of thousands
because it wasn’t him
we are not the sins of our fathers
“whats there to live for
who needs the peace corps
i’m completely stoned
i’m hippy and I’m trippy and
a gypsy on my own”
who will rise up again
and peel themselves away from the
salty sweat of the earth
and become whole
dripping wet
when you traverse across the sky and
approach the doorway to Hell
and grasp in your palm
its diamond knob
and twisting
push it open
you will find
that you were already inside.
Not all monsters are physically repugnant or physically present. In fact, some of the most horrifying monsters do not appear in physical form at all. This type of monster can best be written about in poetry, and though it is given a name, it is more abstract and intangible than most other monsters. It takes a psychological rather than physical attack upon its victims, who are usually vulnerable and unaware of its threat until after the attack. Such a monster is present in many works of poetry and prose, such as Allen Ginsberg’s Howl. The monster in “Howl” is presented in the second chorus and introduced under the name “Moloch.” Though Ginsberg is talking about the emphasis that people in his generation put upon materialistic desires, it is peculiar that he chooses the name “Moloch.” This name appears in many other forms of literature, ranging from Milton’s “Paradise Lost” to The Bible. I wrote “Moloch” as a response to Ginsberg’s poem. In my poem, however, Moloch is not manifested in the false idols of modern society. He has morphed into something even more intangible: the apathy of our youth.
Traditionally, Moloch was a god who was worshiped in ancient Carthage. Not
much is known about his power in this society, but many stories, such as Gustav
Flaubert’s Salammbo depict a widely accepted tale. Taking place in Carthage,
before the control of Roman Empire, The people in ancient Carthage believed
in two gods: Tanith, a goddess of peace and light and Moloch, god of death
and fire. When the civilians began to worship Moloch instead of Tanith, chaos
erupted in the streets: Then the priests, to encourage the people, drew bodkins
from their girdles and gashed their faces. The Devotees, who were stretched
on the ground outside, were brought within the enclosure. A bundle of horrible
irons was thrown to them, and each chose his own torture. They drove in spits
between their breasts; they split their cheeks; they put crowns of thorns
upon their heads; then they twined their arms together, and surrounded the
children in another large circle which widened and contracted in turns. They
reached to the balustrade, they threw themselves back again, and then began
once more, attracting the crowd to them by the dizziness of their motion with
its accompanying blood and shrieks.”(Flaubert 241)
Perhaps the most famous ritual of Moloch’s worshipers
is the sacrifice of children. This is referenced in the bible numerous times,
referring to Jews who worshiped ‘false idols.’ The chief feature
of Moloch's worship among the Jews seems to have been the sacrifice of children,
usually by burning them alive.
I thought that Moloch would be a good title for my poem and a good subject
to address, for though the religion of the ancient Carthaginians has faded
away, the souls of the youth in modern society are still sacrificed. Where
worship of greed was the means by which this monster corrupted the youth in
Ginsberg’s generation, the new generation suffers from the aftermath
of this attack. They no longer feel anything, showing not even a trace of
the greed or hatred expressed in past generations. There is no motivation
to do anything more than what is necessary to survive each day. Passionate
people are deemed insane. In midst of a society which capitalizes on violence
and hatred in the media, nothing surprises the younger generation anymore.
They have become a youth built on nihilistic principles, floating through
life in a murky haze of non-involvement. This is a generation which suffers
from Moloch of the mind.
This poem is meant to be read aloud in a monotone voice, breaking
only occasionally for pleading with particular characters who are addressed
(ie: Moloch and Allen Ginsberg.) Unlike Ginsberg’s Howl, this poem does
not have a set form. It switches back and forth between flowing, traditional
poetic language, reminiscent of biblical texts and choppy, modern lines. I
created this opposition in the actual form of the poem in order to represent
the differences and similarities between the modern condition and the condition
of Ginsberg’s generation. This creates a monstrous effect because it
moves from traditional, controlled sentence structure to quick chaotic bursts
of language.
This poem is made up of a combination of many different literary
and artistic works. The first stanza references one of Ginsberg’s other
poems, entitled “America.” I put in this reference in order to
show a change over time. In “America” the first line reads “I’ve
given you all and now I’m forgotten.” I changed the last part
of that sentence to read “and now I’ve lost it.” This symbolizes
the changing of the youth’s definition of him/herself. In many of Ginsberg’s
poems, he tells of his generation’s struggle to regain a sense of identity
amidst the growing sense of greed. I changed the line to show that the new
struggle is to hold onto anything, even if it was a material definition of
self. This transition between the identification of self is considered monstrous,
as demonstrated by Freud in his essay “The Uncanny.” The speaker
also makes reference to the Greek myth of Icarus, who was too bold and flew
too close to the sun.
The first and only time the speaker addresses Moloch is in the
fourth stanza. The speaker calls Moloch a “saucy pedantic prince of
cement and steel,” making an obvious reference to Donne’s poem
“The Sun Rising.” I chose this particular poem for the speaker
to reference in order to show how something so harmless as the sun could be
construed as malevolent. This perceived harmlessness is also applied to apathy.
At first apathy is nothing more than a defense mechanism, a positive reaction
which the body exudes in order to avoid harm. Then, it grows. Its harmless
nature transforms into a virus, which takes over the mind. It is more extreme
than both love and hatred. It is nothing; it is simply a void where emotion
and passion once rested. In this stanza, the speaker also accuses Moloch of
murdering his/her children. The speaker questions Moloch’s appearance,
somewhat sarcastically “Or is that pomegranate running down your chin?”
This is a reference to the belief of many ancient religions that pomegranate
juice is the drink of the dead.
In the sixth stanza, the image of the man with “a sign
stamped on his forehead”is a reference to the biblical story of Cain
and Abel. The murder of his brother is one of the most famous examples of
monstrosity in religious literature. All of Cain’s descendants are doomed
to damnation and abandonment because of this crime. I found this to be a useful
image to reference because apathy serves as a defense mechanism in severe
situations, especially ones in which a person is rejected by his/her creator
for no reason. This theme of rejection carries over into the ninth stanza.
In this stanza, the speaker declares “We are not the sins of our fathers!”
This is a popular proclamation of his generation that is used against the
injustices which are presented to them. The next lines in this stanza are
taken from a Frank Zappa song. These lyrics counter the first line of the
stanza: “what’s there to live for/who needs the peace corps?/I’m
completely stoned/I’m hippy and I’m trippy and a gypsy on my own.”
These lines are sarcastic judgements made to poke fun at the apathy that was
growing in the youth when this song was written. I chose to include this musical
reference because it shows that apathy did not strike this new generation
immediately, but rather crept in little by little over time. It is as though
the speaker is saying to the generation: ‘No. We are the sins of our
fathers. If we do not stop it, our apathy will live on in our children as
well.’
The seventh stanza makes a direct reference once again to Ginsberg’s
“Howl.” At one point in this poem, Ginsberg addresses his friend,
Carl Solomon, whom he values as a visionary and martyr. Ginsberg met Solomon
in Rockland Hospital in New York. He believed that Solomon was a genius, tortured
by the Moloch-infested environment which surrounded his generation. Similarly,
in this poem, the speaker addresses Ginsberg himself. The speaker tells Ginsberg
that no one is safe from the new Moloch, nor were they ever safe from it.
The speaker asks the question “Don’t you know this animal soup
of time comes hormone enhanced?” This question references the many scandals
in America’s food industry. Though many Americans know that the food
they are eating contains many harmful hormones, most do not care. The three
last lines of this stanza are choppy and short. “Souped up” represents
the manner in which society makes anything look desirable, even things which
are harmful. “Beat down” is the what the modern youth becomes
after Moloch finishes them. “Drink up” is a sarcastic remark to
the generations apathy, for though they are aware of these corruptive circumstances,
they simply choose to ignore their knowledge and accept the lies which are
fed to them.
The tenth stanza demonstrates monstrosity in one of its simplest
forms. According to Freud, immortality is a frightening characteristic. The
minds of the generation here are not alive, not dead, but they are un-dead.
As monstrous as this seems, a corpse rising from its sweaty grave, it also
gives the poem an effect of hope. For though their desire and emotion is no
longer inside them, they still have enough passion inside themselves to live.
The generation has a redemptive quality, it can make whole what was once empty
and broken. The youth can rise up again, with what little desire they have
left and ultimately conquer the monster that terrorizes them. The first line
in the eleventh stanza references the sea-journey of many epic heroes, including
Odysseus. These heroes must go through a series of tasks, many of which seem
like they will end in hopeless tragedy, before they can achieve their final
and heroic goal.
The last two lines present the most monstrous idea of all– the idea that one’s perceptions are not one’s true reality. In modern society, many people believe exactly what is presented to them. The concept of Hell in modern society has taken a childish turn. It is no longer a frightening idea but rather a humorous depiction, a threat of mothers to make their children obey the rules. Hell is a social construct in modern society, just like Disney world. Everyone knows what Hell is supposed to look like- dark, sinister, flames of fire and screams of torture everywhere. The speaker rejects this concept of Hell. Hell is not a fictitious place where murders and evil-doers go after they die. Hell is the world without emotion; a place where people worship the dollar and create steel towers to demonstrate their power which they’ve gained through their apathy. This call for humanity to realize that Hell is forming all around them, though dark and depressing, is not one of hopelessness. The speaker puts forth a typical existential question, “You are in Hell. What do you do now?” with hope that the people will regain control over their minds by accepting responsibility for their actions and moving forward.
Works Cited:
Asher, Levi. “Howl.” Rev. of “Howl,” Allen Ginsberg.
June 1998. Literary Kicks Reviews.
http://www.charm.net/~brooklyn/Poems/Howl.html (11/5/03)
Donne, John. Poems of John Donne. vol I. ed. E. K. Chambers, London: Lawrence
& Bullen, 1896. 7-8.
Flaubert, Gustave. “Moloch” Salammbo. New York: Viking-Penguin Inc, 1987. 212-243
Freud, Sigmund. “The Uncanny” Writings on Art and
Literature. Stanford: Stanford University
Press, 1997
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl” The Portable Beat Reader. Ed. Ann Charters. New York: Penguin Books Ltd. 1992. 62-71
