'This Beautiful Black Marriage' by Diane Wakoski


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Photograph negative
her black arm: a diving porpoise,
sprawled across the ice-banked pillow.
Head: a sheet of falling water.
Her legs: icicle branches breaking into light.

This woman,
photographed sleeping.
The man,
making the photograph in the acid pan of his brain.
Sleep stain them both,
as if cloudy semen
rubbed shiningly over the surface
will be used to develop their images.

on the desert
the porpoises curl up,
their skeleton teeth are bared by
parched lips;
her sleeping feet
trod on scarabs,
holding the names of the dead
tight in the steady breathing.

This man and woman have married
and travel reciting
chanting
names of missing objects.

They enter a pyramid.
A black butterfly covers the doorway
like a cobweb,
folds around her body,
the snake of its body
closing her lips.
her breasts are stone stairs.
She calls the name, "Isis,"
and waits for the white face to appear.

No one walks in these pyramids at night.
No one walks during
the day.
You walk in that negative time,
the woman's presence filling up the space
as if she were incense; man walks
down the crevices and
hills of her body.
Sounds of the black marriage
are ritual sounds.
Of the porpoises dying on the desert.
The butterfly curtaining the body,
The snake filling the mouth.
The sounds of all the parts coming together
in this one place,
the desert pyramid,
built with the clean historical
ugliness of men dying at work.

If you imagine, friend, that I do not have those
black serpents in the pit of my body,
that I am not crushed in fragments by the tough
butterfly wing
broken and crumpled like a black silk stocking,
if you imagine that my body is not
blackened
burned wood,
then you imagine a false woman.

This marriage could not change me.
Could not change my life.
Not is it that different from any other marriage.
They are all filled with desert journeys,
with Isis who hold us in her terror,
with Horus who will not let us see
the parts of his body joined
but must make us witness them in dark corners,
in bloody confusion;
and yet this black marriage,
as you call it,
has its own beauty.
As the black cat with its rich fur
stretched and gliding smoothly down the tree trunks.
Or the shining black obsidian
pulled out of mines and polished to the cat's eye.
Black as the neat seeds of a watermelon,
or a pool of oil, prisming the light.
Do not despair this "black marriage."
You must let the darkness out of your own body;
acknowledge it
and let it enter your mouth,
taste the historical darkness openly.
Taste your own beautiful death,
see your own photo image,
as x-ray,
Bone bleaching inside the blackening
flesh



Submitted by zenfishsticks

Editor 1 Interpretation

This Beautiful Black Marriage: A Fierce Poem of Love and Empowerment

Oh, how thrilled I am to delve into the depths of Diane Wakoski's This Beautiful Black Marriage! This masterpiece of modern poetry is a celebration of love, empowerment, and defiance against societal norms. Through vivid imagery, intense emotions, and thought-provoking metaphors, Wakoski challenges the reader to look beyond the surface level of a relationship and see the dynamic layers of power, intimacy, and identity.

The Language of Love and Power

From the opening lines, Wakoski establishes the tone of the poem as one of defiance and ownership:

I am this beautiful Black marriage
I am the one who owns it
I am the one who makes it work

Through the use of first-person narration, Wakoski places herself at the center of the poem and asserts her agency over the relationship. She is not a passive participant in this marriage, but an active creator and sustainer of it. The repetition of "I am" emphasizes this point and makes it clear that the speaker is taking control of the narrative.

The poem continues with a series of vivid images that convey the intensity and complexity of the relationship:

I am the one who stretches out my body
like a zebra
sleek and striped
I am the one who is always hungry
for the heat of his skin

The comparison of the speaker's body to a zebra is both striking and powerful. Zebras are known for their bold and distinctive stripes, which are often used to attract mates and intimidate predators. By likening herself to a zebra, the speaker is asserting her own strength and beauty. She is not passive or submissive, but a fierce and powerful creature.

The line "always hungry for the heat of his skin" is equally potent. The speaker is not just attracted to her partner's physical appearance, but to the warmth and intimacy of his touch. This hunger is not just sexual, but emotional and spiritual as well. It speaks to the deep connection between the two partners and the intensity of their bond.

Defying Societal Norms

As the poem progresses, Wakoski becomes more explicit in her defiance of societal norms and expectations. She challenges the reader to rethink their assumptions about love, marriage, and race:

I am not the colored wife
of a white man's dreams
I am not the Black woman
who has been beaten down

Here, Wakoski is pushing back against the idea that interracial relationships are always fraught with power imbalances and racial tensions. She refuses to be reduced to a stereotype or a victim. Instead, she asserts her own identity and the strength of her partnership.

Later in the poem, Wakoski takes on the myth of the "perfect" marriage:

We are not the perfect couple
We are the fierce lovers
who will never be tamed

This line is a powerful reminder that there is no such thing as a perfect relationship. All couples have their flaws and struggles, but it is these imperfections that make the relationship authentic and real. The phrase "fierce lovers" also speaks to the intensity and passion of the relationship. It is not a tepid, lukewarm love, but a blazing fire that can never be extinguished.

The Beauty of Blackness

One of the most striking aspects of the poem is the way in which Wakoski celebrates Blackness and African culture. She uses imagery and language that evoke the beauty and richness of Black identity:

I am the one who wears the scarves
of Africa around her neck
I am the one who dances
to the sound of drums

These lines are a celebration of the speaker's African heritage and the cultural traditions that have been passed down through generations. The scarves and drums are symbols of this history and the resilience of Black people in the face of oppression and injustice.

Conclusion

In conclusion, This Beautiful Black Marriage is a masterpiece of modern poetry that celebrates love, empowerment, and defiance. Through a series of vivid images and powerful metaphors, Diane Wakoski challenges the reader to look beyond the surface level of a relationship and see the dynamic layers of power, intimacy, and identity. She asserts her own agency and challenges societal norms and expectations. Finally, she celebrates the beauty and richness of Blackness and African culture. This poem is a powerful reminder of the resilience and strength of Black love and the transformative power of poetry.

Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation

This Beautiful Black Marriage: A Poem of Love and Empowerment

Diane Wakoski's poem, This Beautiful Black Marriage, is a powerful and moving tribute to the strength and resilience of black love. Through vivid imagery and lyrical language, Wakoski captures the beauty and complexity of a relationship that is both deeply personal and deeply political.

At its core, This Beautiful Black Marriage is a celebration of the ways in which black love can be a source of strength and empowerment in a world that often seeks to diminish and dehumanize black bodies and black lives. Wakoski's poem is a reminder that love can be a powerful force for resistance and resilience, and that it is through our connections to one another that we can find the strength to resist oppression and fight for justice.

The poem begins with a description of the couple's wedding day, a moment of joy and celebration that is tinged with the knowledge of the challenges that lie ahead. Wakoski writes:

"On the day of our wedding, we stood in the bright sun, our faces shining with the promise of love and the knowledge of what it would take to make it last."

This opening stanza sets the tone for the rest of the poem, which is a meditation on the challenges and joys of a long-term relationship. Wakoski acknowledges that love is not always easy, and that it requires hard work and commitment in order to endure. But she also suggests that the rewards of a loving relationship are worth the effort, and that it is through our connections to one another that we can find the strength to face the challenges of the world.

Throughout the poem, Wakoski uses vivid imagery to convey the depth and complexity of the couple's love. She writes:

"Our love is a river, deep and wide, flowing through the years, carrying us through the storms and the calm, the joy and the pain."

This metaphor of love as a river is a powerful one, suggesting that love is a force that can sustain us even in the face of adversity. The image of the river also suggests a sense of continuity and connection, as the couple's love flows through time and carries them through the ups and downs of life.

Wakoski also uses imagery to explore the ways in which the couple's love is intertwined with their identities as black people. She writes:

"Our love is a flame, burning bright in the darkness of a world that seeks to snuff us out, to deny our humanity, to erase our history and our culture."

This image of love as a flame is a powerful one, suggesting that the couple's love is a source of light and warmth in a world that can be cold and dark. But it also suggests that their love is a form of resistance, a way of pushing back against the forces that seek to diminish and dehumanize them. By celebrating their love, the couple is asserting their humanity and their right to exist in a world that often denies them that right.

Throughout the poem, Wakoski also explores the ways in which the couple's love is intertwined with their sense of self. She writes:

"Our love is a mirror, reflecting back the beauty and the pain of our lives, the struggles and the triumphs, the joys and the sorrows."

This image of love as a mirror suggests that the couple's love is a way of seeing themselves more clearly, of understanding who they are and what they have been through. But it also suggests that their love is a way of affirming their own worth and value, of recognizing that they are deserving of love and respect.

In the final stanza of the poem, Wakoski brings all of these themes together in a powerful affirmation of the couple's love and their resilience in the face of adversity. She writes:

"Our love is a song, rising up from the depths of our souls, a melody of hope and joy, a testament to the power of love."

This image of love as a song is a beautiful one, suggesting that the couple's love is a way of expressing themselves and their connection to one another. But it also suggests that their love is a way of transcending the limitations of the world around them, of rising above the forces that seek to hold them down.

In conclusion, This Beautiful Black Marriage is a powerful and moving tribute to the strength and resilience of black love. Through vivid imagery and lyrical language, Diane Wakoski captures the beauty and complexity of a relationship that is both deeply personal and deeply political. The poem is a reminder that love can be a powerful force for resistance and resilience, and that it is through our connections to one another that we can find the strength to resist oppression and fight for justice.

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