Violence and Love Through Pantoum
The Pantoum originated in Malaysia in the 15th century and was introduced to western poetry in the 19th century. It does not have a set length and is made up of four line stanzas in which the second and fourth lines of a stanza are repeated as the first and third lines in the next stanza. In the book An Exaltation of Forms, it is described as “a popular form, used by the common folk for a variety of purposes, to express love, lyricism, and other verities” (Gotera 255). The form of traditional and contemporary Pantoums differ, but in both, there is an emphasis on repetition and syntax.
Pamela Stewart’s poem “Punk Pantoum” uses repetition and syntax to illustrates its motif of an abusive relationship. The first line sets the tone for the rest of the poem.
“Tonight I’ll walk the razor along your throat” (Stewart 259).
The violent imagery of a razor against someone's throat simultaneously shocks and draws in the audience. This line is interesting upon further inspection, as the author does not say who put the razor there or why, she only says that there is a threat to this other person's life and tonight she has decided to press it further or “walk along it.” The next line states, “You’ll wear blood jewels and last week’s ochre bruise”(Stewart 259). The author is referring to the scabbing of the razor wound as wearing “blood jewels”. Here it becomes much clearer that an abusive relationship is being depicted. The author believes their partner should be proudly wearing the wounds they inflicted, much like jewelry. They also mention wearing the bruises of last week, implying the throat injury was not the only abuse their partner endured.
In the fifth stanza, the author writes, “I knew I loved you then, with your blistered face and tracks” ( Stewart 259). The author states she fell in love with her partner after meeting them with their “hair on fire” at a flower market. Their hair may have been literally on fire, or it is a metaphor for another visible pain. The blistered face reveals that their partner is unwell and constantly facing the elements (possibly homeless). And the tracks could be referring to scars on the arm from self-harm or drug use. This individual is clearly vulnerable and in distress; the author is aware of that and wants to take advantage but is mistaking it for the feeling of love. The third line of the sixth stanza repeats this idea of falling in love stating, “That says, I’ll always love you and your face. Let’s make new tracks” (Stewart 259). This repetition of “tracks” shows that the author wants to further inflict drugharm on the vulnerable individual they found.
In the final stanza, the poem has come full circle by ending it similarly to how it started. “Tonight, dragging the white hot razor across our throats, and back…” (Stewart 259). Unlike the first line, this line states that both of their throats are being slashed by a razor. The repetition of the razor against the throat aids in the development of the dynamic of these two individuals. It shows that the relationship that these individuals are in has dangerously progressed and will be the death of them both.
Gotera Vincent. “The Pantoum’s Postcolonial Pedigree.” An Exaltation of Forms: Contemporary Poets Celebrate the Diversity of Their Art. Edited by Anne Finch and Katherine Varnes, U of Michigan P, 2002. pp. 254–261.
Stewart, Pamela. “Punk Pantoum.” An Exaltation of Forms: Contemporary Poets Celebrate the Diversity of Their Art. Edited by Anne Finch and Katherine Varnes, U of Michigan P, 2002. p. 259.
