The Jolly Roger
Paul Marauder 1962 (Belfast)
On board the Jolly Roger
the fickle crew
listen to their fickle captain
as he speaks
with his fickle tongue.
Spitting blame and phlegm
on everyone
and everything
His capricious manner
destroys any harmony
amongst the crew.
For the Jolly to exist
it must navigate
in troubled waters.
And for the crew to survive
they must drown
everyday in the misery
and acrimony of
their egomaniacal captain.
I'm on board another ship
now called the Enterprise.
We sail on calmer waters.
Guided by knowledge, empathy
and brotherhood
and a love for the sea.
Now and again I see the Jolly Roger
but I no longer
recognise the crew.
The sound of raucous laughter
is still there
but has now diminished.
I see the captain.
He walks with a limp now.
He wears a patch over his
left eye.
His faithful malevolent pet
is by his side
still snapping at heels.
A young man walks the plank.
The fickle crew point,
laugh and push him
to the edge.
I wake in a cold sweat
and smile.......
About this poem
This poem is about bullying in the work place. It’s set on board a ship but it could be anywhere.
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Written on January 06, 2023
Submitted by pauljoe77 on February 20, 2023
Modified by pauljoe77 on July 12, 2023
- 1:06 min read
- 174 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABCXX XCXADB XXEXXDXC XXEDXD AABAXX CXXXFXX XXXX FX |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 993 |
Words | 220 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 5, 6, 8, 6, 6, 7, 4, 2 |
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"The Jolly Roger" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 13 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/152005/the-jolly-roger>.
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