Velocity Of Money
by Allen Ginsberg
I’m delighted by the velocity of money as it whistles through the windows
of Lower East Side
Delighted by skyscrapers rising the old grungy apartments falling on
84th Street
Delighted by inflation that drives me out on the street
After all what good’s the family farm, why eat turkey by thousands every
Thanksgiving?
Why not have Star Wars? Why have the same old America?!?
George Washington wasn’t good enough! Tom Paine pain in the neck,
Whitman what a jerk!
I’m delighted by double digit interest rates in the Capitalist world
I always was a communist, now we’ll win
an usury makes the walls thinner, books thicker & dumber
Usury makes my poetry more valuable
my manuscripts worth their weight in useless gold -
Now everybody’s atheist like me, nothing’s sacred
buy and sell your grandmother, eat up old age homes,
Peddle babies on the street, pretty boys for sale on Times Square -
You can shoot heroin, I can sniff cocaine,
macho men can fite on the Nicaraguan border and get paid with paper!
The velocity’s what counts as the National Debt gets higher
Everybody running after the rising dollar
Crowds of joggers down broadway past City Hall on the way to the Fed
Nobody reads Dostoyevsky books so they’ll have to give a passing ear
to my fragmented ravings in between President’s speeches
Nothing’s happening but the collapse of the Economy
so I can go back to sleep till the landlord wins his eviction suit in court.
of Lower East Side
Delighted by skyscrapers rising the old grungy apartments falling on
84th Street
Delighted by inflation that drives me out on the street
After all what good’s the family farm, why eat turkey by thousands every
Thanksgiving?
Why not have Star Wars? Why have the same old America?!?
George Washington wasn’t good enough! Tom Paine pain in the neck,
Whitman what a jerk!
I’m delighted by double digit interest rates in the Capitalist world
I always was a communist, now we’ll win
an usury makes the walls thinner, books thicker & dumber
Usury makes my poetry more valuable
my manuscripts worth their weight in useless gold -
Now everybody’s atheist like me, nothing’s sacred
buy and sell your grandmother, eat up old age homes,
Peddle babies on the street, pretty boys for sale on Times Square -
You can shoot heroin, I can sniff cocaine,
macho men can fite on the Nicaraguan border and get paid with paper!
The velocity’s what counts as the National Debt gets higher
Everybody running after the rising dollar
Crowds of joggers down broadway past City Hall on the way to the Fed
Nobody reads Dostoyevsky books so they’ll have to give a passing ear
to my fragmented ravings in between President’s speeches
Nothing’s happening but the collapse of the Economy
so I can go back to sleep till the landlord wins his eviction suit in court.
Analysis:
In this poem Allen Ginsberg uses a sardonic tone to criticize importance placed on money in today's society. He believes that people are too focused on money. He expresses this when he says, "everyone running after the rising dollar." He is saying that people are chasing after money. While they chasing money they are placing too much importance over it. Ginsberg criticizes how people put money before family when he says, "buy and sell your grandmother." The sarcasm in this line enhances the sardonic tone of the piece. He is also angered about the current state of the economy and uses sarcasm to express this. He says he is delighted by the poor conditions of the economy when he really is not. For example, he is "delighted by inflation rates that drives me out on the street" and "delighted by double digit interest rates." Using this parallel structure and structure adds to Ginsberg's disapproving sardonic tone. It is clear through reading this poem that Ginsberg is an opponent of Capitalism. When he uses the word "Capitalist" to describe the world, it sounds like an insult. He also states that he is a communist in the poem.
In this poem Allen Ginsberg uses a sardonic tone to criticize importance placed on money in today's society. He believes that people are too focused on money. He expresses this when he says, "everyone running after the rising dollar." He is saying that people are chasing after money. While they chasing money they are placing too much importance over it. Ginsberg criticizes how people put money before family when he says, "buy and sell your grandmother." The sarcasm in this line enhances the sardonic tone of the piece. He is also angered about the current state of the economy and uses sarcasm to express this. He says he is delighted by the poor conditions of the economy when he really is not. For example, he is "delighted by inflation rates that drives me out on the street" and "delighted by double digit interest rates." Using this parallel structure and structure adds to Ginsberg's disapproving sardonic tone. It is clear through reading this poem that Ginsberg is an opponent of Capitalism. When he uses the word "Capitalist" to describe the world, it sounds like an insult. He also states that he is a communist in the poem.
I choose to analyze this poem because one if my favorite movies, Kill Your Darlings, is about Allen Ginsberg and the Beat Generation. I wanted to learn more about the great poetry by the famous poets that the characters in the movie are based off of. I really enjoyed this poem because of it's message. Although it was written in the 1987, I believe the truths in the poem can be applied to today's society. Too many people are too focused on money that they forget about important things like family and knowledge.
Nice analysis (even thought this wasn't an option!) Work towards developing a clear focus so that it seems less like you are listing points of analysis and more like you have a clear sense of theme.
ReplyDeleteHi im matt hamilton and im bored so im gonna give an analysis on an analysis. im matt hamilton and i like being a virgin
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