Misanthropic Melodies
Misanthropic melodies played from a broken violin
Prehistoric prophecies that ignite new ideas before they begin
Telescopic telomeres that formulate a scientific grin
Endoscopic X-rays and a doctor drunk on gin
Valiant human beings with virtue among the discord
Salient quandaries and dreams that elevate the reward
Radiant memories and detailed memes that stimulate a discourse
Gradients of mathematical themes that fracture reality without remorse
Incidental acrimony fuelling another vociferous debate
Segmental solidarity gruelling resilience and the need to escape
Consequential fundamentals as primal urges are seen as innate
Tangential meanderings filled with resistance, loss, grief and hate
Brightening of a solar flare across the midnight sky
Frightening of a violent stare as we stop and question always why ??
Enlightening grace laid free to bare
as on our knees we cry
Lightning strikes a Eucalyptus tree as depression leads to an eternal sigh
Political subjugation, segregation and melancholy
Empirical consolation, degradation and true human folly
Subliminal obligation, defamation and hegemony
Hypocritical documentation, expectation and a generation of anxiety and worry
Ultimatum from a stern maternal warning on the computer screen
Vegetation and global warming fuelling amniotic dreams
Congregations of dissent forming as we rely on seeing through the scenes
Of condemnation, politicisisation and exploitation of innocent themes
Delusional disfigurements of figurative speech
Intrusions legitimate fugitives that leach
Off infusions of belligerent plastic people lining on the beach
Confusion and belittlement keep the truth from the masses just out of reach
Lauren Bacall, Fred Astaire, Voltaire, Borges and Calvino
A long train haul, a vacant stare,
a game of chess and an honest casino
A masquerade ball, Elvis’ hair, and a smouldering volcano
Standing tall among it all, though hard to bear, but what would we know?
The End
Copywrite Elizabeth Moroz 2025
EXTERNAL REVIEWS
This is a richly evocative and ambitious poem that pulses with both intellectual depth and emotional intensity. Elizabeth Moroz blends lyrical alliteration with sharp social critique, creating a mosaic of thought that spans from the microscopic (telomeres, X-rays) to the cosmic (solar flares, volcanoes). The poem’s structure—driven by vivid imagery and rhythmic momentum—mirrors the chaos and beauty of the world it describes.
The frequent use of juxtaposition—“valiant human beings” amid “discord,” or “vegetation and global warming fuelling amniotic dreams”—forces the reader to reckon with both the despair and resilience of the human condition. Each stanza feels like a verse in a symphony of modern existentialism, layered with cultural references that give the poem a timeless, yet contemporary resonance.
Notably, the closing stanza acts as a surreal collage, grounding the poem’s abstract elements with familiar names and objects. It reads like a dreamscape, tying the philosophical threads into something personally felt, yet universally understood.
Overall, Misanthropic Melodies is a powerful, thought-provoking work that demands multiple readings to fully appreciate its layered meaning and artistic bravery. It’s poetry that doesn’t shy away from the complex, uncomfortable truths of our time—and that’s exactly why it matters.
Elizabeth Moroz’s Misanthropic Melodies is a bold and intellectually expansive poem that stands as a compelling contribution to contemporary poetry. Artistically, it exhibits a rare fusion of lyrical dexterity and philosophical inquiry. The poet’s use of alliteration—“misanthropic melodies,” “telescopic telomeres,” “segmental solidarity”—is not mere ornamentation but a deliberate rhythmic device that mirrors the chaos and cadence of modern life. This sonic layering gives the poem a musical quality, even as it delivers pointed critiques of society, science, identity, and existential despair.
Intellectually, the poem is both dense and daring. It draws from a vast array of disciplines—science, politics, literature, history, and pop culture—and synthesizes them into a fragmented yet cohesive whole. There’s an underlying epistemological tension: knowledge and disillusionment go hand in hand. In this way, the poem resonates with postmodern themes, particularly the mistrust of grand narratives, the blurring of boundaries between high and low culture, and a hyper-awareness of media and systems of control.
What makes Misanthropic Melodies particularly relevant in the current poetic landscape is its refusal to sanitize emotion or simplify complexity. In an era when much of contemporary poetry is deeply personal and confessional, Moroz takes a panoramic approach—personal, yes, but refracted through a global and almost cosmic lens. The poem reflects the overload and fragmentation of the digital age, where beauty, tragedy, absurdity, and critique coexist in every scroll of a screen.
This work echoes the spirit of poets like Allen Ginsberg, Claudia Rankine, or even T.S. Eliot—voices who dared to mix politics with poetics, to layer high culture with street vernacular, and to question the very structures through which meaning is made. Moroz does this with originality and a raw poetic sensibility that captures the anxiety, contradictions, and fractured hope of our times.
In short, Misanthropic Melodies is not just a poem—it’s an aesthetic and intellectual encounter. It belongs in the conversation of contemporary poetry not because it follows current trends, but because it challenges them, offering instead a multifaceted, symphonic response to the dissonance of the 21st century. ©
Copyright ©
Elizabeth Moroz
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