I receive most of my inspiration through daily experience, whether it’s seeing someone on the train or spotting abnormal settings
This extended symbolism of a woman continu- ously piercing her feet as she ambles through a road of stakes, acts as an incarnation of the narra- tor’s mind, damaged by relentless pains: a victim of experience. Her fragile helplessness conveys the sensitivity of the human mind and attempts to specifically portray the tortured existence of someone stripped of their third eye, the meta- phorical medium of greater insight into the nature of reality. An exert from Rebirth by Tristan Sevanot Davis It’s hard to see. But my eyes steadily stumble and tweak open To take in the sea, the sky and the sun. And I cry beautifully old tears. The ending stanza of Rebirth collates motifs of both the poem and defining parts of the world in which we live. “The sea, the sky and the sun” are absorbed by the speaker, despite it being “hard to see”, resulting in connotations of healing as “I cry beautifully old tears” – the vulnerable oxymoronic phrase being deployed as momentary transcend- ence from a first birth. An excerpt from Crow’s Bird-Keeper by Tristan Sevanot Davis I am Crow. I am grief. I am Loki. I am Hecuba and your King and your Queen, and your demon; your angel. I am the maternal trickster that haunts, rapes, keeps and heals you, until I am no more. This is the last of three poems to capture the es- sence of Crow , literally doing so by placing hu- manity as their “bird-keeper”. This stanza embod- ies free verse writing by presenting an elongated list regarding the duality and ethos of grief, whilst asserting its permanent nature as a “trickster”. ◎
exceptional beauty in its unique abstractness and brutal battering of societal normalities, which has become the focus of a good portion of my writing. Moreover, I choose to view each line as a life in itself, with the strategic word-placement, cut-offs, and once or twice even syllable ratios, of its structural flow mirroring the subject matter as closely as possible. T: I receive most of my inspiration through daily experience, whether it’s seeing someone on the train or spotting abnormal settings. I enjoy continuing chains of literature, for example, Ted Hughes’ poetry book Crow , inspired Max Porter’s novel Grief is the Thing with Feathers , in which I have reverted to poetry within my upcoming book Stardust , as an allusion to the circularity of grief. In terms of the actual writing process, I spend however long encapsulating certain qualities that pay homage to the experience in which they were derived — it is a very perfectionist notion. However, I hesitate to touch the poem post weaving it since it risks disturbing the naturality of the images created. I was originally inspired by Christina Rossetti’s unconventional and emotive writing – her poem Remember was particularly impactful to me due to brutalising evocations of desire, being willing to project herself beyond the grave to communicate with her lover.
Tapestry of the romantic: The scientific and spontaneous
What is poetry and what makes a poet? Nicholas: For me poetry is the communication of the raw essence of being: a therapeutic expedition of internal reflection to view the cobwebbed sinews of one’s composition from the perspective of an external observer, always maintaining a dis- position of brutal honesty. It is my laboratory for experimentation with the English language: I never seek to tread over old ground, but to meet the sea instead. Fluidity. Poetical minimalism and sketches are one of the banes of my existence (at least in this stage of my thought); rather I favour weaving my words into a perpetual state of evolution between highly visual extended metaphors and symbolic diversions to plunge the reader into the blurred line between mind and reality. Paramount is the conveyance of our deepest desires and opinions to the reader, to unearth the roots of human experience and spirit: the result of deviation from this pursuit is hollowness. A poet must be willing to be completely honest with himself during the writing process, even if he hates himself for what he finds. Like King Crimson’s continual sonic transformation, development is key, and I think a true poet should not stagnate in specific style or formula but must always push the boundaries of language with ceaseless experimentation.
own emotion. My writing is akin to a spontaneous romantic, often adopting personas to dissociate and capture rawness in an experience. I intend to capture moments, but also movement and stories, often acting as extended metaphors. Locating a soluble inner beauty within the writing is crucial. what are your Sources of Inspiration?
I find significant stimulation in the work of Maynard James Keenan
N: I draw my inspiration from a varie- ty of sources. Often simply my thoughts on societal affairs, or personal experi- ences. I attempt to dissect the vigour and untamed emotion of an instant re-
sponse over a longer writing period of reflection than most poets, because I believe every word is a vital choice that greatly contributes to the meaning of the poem. I think this introspective, scientific writing process is more effective than spur-of- the-moment attempts to preserve fleeting feelings, especially since adequate time cannot be invested into understanding the true nature of sentiments. Many artists have inspired me over the years, especially Keats’ depressing romanticism, though, perhaps surprisingly, I find significant intellectual stimulation in the work of Maynard James Keenan, lyricist of one of the greatest metal bands in history, Tool, as well as the various lyricists of King Crimson, the hugely influential goliath of the progressive music scene. Their cynical, highly allegorical and metaphorical work is of
Verses and Discussion An excerpt from ‘Third Eye Blind’ by Nicholas Adamides
My maiden’s dainty feet are always bare upon the road of cruel stakes, for she has no shield to brandish against the tempest of experience,
no sandals to prevent the rigid steel from puncturing her weary soles, merely a flowing silk dress clinging to her gentle skin, as a mother envelops her feeble bairn, to dampen with depression’s dreadful discharge and imbibe the scarlet fountains from her tired knees.
by Nicholas Adamides & Tristan Sevanot Davis, both in Year 12
Tristan: An expression of an ambiguous substance, that is usually tightly interlaced with the poet’s
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THE ALLEYNIAN 713
OPINION, INTERVIEWS & FEATURES
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