The Passionate Murderer

by Anwesha

Published January 10, 2012

His touch is a knife, his gaze a poison,
He steals into the night and unveils his person.

His face so handsome, and those eyes so dreamy,
You’d never imagine that the Satan lies underneath.

His grace, his charm, and the words he’d speak,
Would make you believe he’s an Angel, indeed.

He captivates you with his enchanting ways,
Gives you every pleasure and asks you to stay.

It feels like dream as he fixes his gaze upon you.
I tell you ‘tis a poison, but you believe it to be untrue.

He takes your hands and touches your skin.
And in all his passion, the cut of the knife, you don’t feel.

And as he’s killing you passionately, you slowly begin to realize,
The Satan behind those dreamy eyes, and the peril that lies inside.

You struggle to get away, you struggle to be free.
Alas! It’s of no use; he’s already tightened his grip.

Now, near your pyre I stand and lament, “Oh dear!
So hard I tried to warn you of the Passionate Murderer.”

Comments & reviews · 3
User avatar
murtuza
Review
murtuza wrote a review Review · Jan 11, 2012

Hey Anwesha!

A very good poem, indeed. The seemingly sadistic nature of the murderer as he taunts his prey and the smitten victim who doesn't realize she's been played have been so well pictured. 'The Devil in disguise' method has worked well here. And there's room for improvement too. Though I still do like this poem a lot. The concept, imagery and that whole scene seem well played out.

Now, moving on to my nit-picks. :D
The rhyming style you've implemented is simple and good. But it feels a lot like you've been trying to rhyme it too hard. I always felt a forced rhyme at the end of those sentences. It would do well to come up with something that catches the reader by surprises. I almost knew exactly what words you would rhyme with. So it was a bit underwhelming in the rhyming department. On the other hand, I love rhyme. I'm such a rhymer. And I love it when people integrate rhyming into their poems. It sort of brings the poem to life and gives more art and feel and impact on the reader. I applaud any piece written in rhyme, be it good or a little less. And you've done very well in attempting. So don't be discouraged. Your effort is commendable.

Another thing was that your rhyming started and ended in abrupt sequences throughout the poems. Some lines were devoid of any rhyming whatsoever and it felt like half-way through the poem, you gave up on trying. That's a big downer since as a reader, I expected there to be some level of consistency withing the poem. And I was a bit disappointed at that. But if you did all this on purpose and want to say that it's your style, that's cool too. Though this style might not be well received since people will think that you're being confused on whether you want to make this a free verse or rhyming poem. And even if it was possible to implement both, I would suggest maybe not being so abrupt in the structure. Try making 1 portion of it in rhyme and the other in free-verse. It'll be more stream-lined and stylized. 8)

Also, this poem could have been a little more poetic in its message. Some drama and masala to the plot would be great. The narrator seems just like a sort of observer who just laments and griefs over the departed. And there's no other role that he/she plays so it's quite boring. What would have been a good twist was if the narrator happened to be the Murderer himself (which would be revealed towards the end) and how he tried to bottle up his devious desires but submit to his insanity. That would have made a stellar story!
The way the lines sound, seem like a lot to emote. You've heavily infused the lines with too many words and it sounds like a regular sentence rather than a poetic one. I suggest doing Ellipsis which is simply making the lines shorter by omitting certain obvious words from the line which the audiences can understand without any fuss. For example, you wrote:

You’d never imagine that the Satan lies underneath.

Now this line is very good. It shows strong imagery and crisp message. But it's far too..... un-poetic since it's like you're using regular everyday language here. And that doesn't fit too well. With Ellipsis...

You shan't imagine Satan be underneath

Not the best example, I know :). But the link above will explain more of it with great depth ^.^

So all in all, I'm left with a satisfying feeling. But also, I feel that this piece could use much more. There's potential, definitely. And though you've done well to write it, it's as convincing as it could be. Nevertheless, it's still a good poem and I quite like it. Dark and Deceptive in nature, yet cool and calm in the delivery. Keep the ink flowing!

Murtuza
:)

User avatar
JustisMarez
Review
JustisMarez wrote a review Review · Jan 10, 2012

I really liked this, it was different than I've read or am used to reading. I'm not that into poetry but this was good. I like how you told it. Very creative. Hmm. Ghostie got most of it so yeah...well. I enjoy your work, so keep writing. :D

User avatar
ghostie
Review
ghostie wrote a review Review · Jan 10, 2012

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I wonder if people felt the freedom in our culture to love louder, if they'd be quicker to say "I miss you" when the absence of someone is felt instead of just thinking it.
— soundofmind