when i was just getting over
the artificial world of
america – even making love seems artificial these days –
when i was just getting over
this plastic world in which i
work and play i saw an
electric wire coming out of the ground
and up a tree it went down and
it went into the ground on the
other side it came out of the
ground at the next tree and
i thought . . .
christ,
electric trees
life and times of r w miller
poems, musings, random thoughts and observations
how is ‘making love’ in any way connected to an electric tree? how can ‘making love’ be artificial if it is what you make? do you mean sex? is that the electric tree? so your sex is plastic, wired, and lit? interesting that the artificiality comes up out of what is most certainly organic … the ground. pause.
Miss Moran, the poem is about American ingenuity. It is not about sex. The reference to making love as seeming to be artificial is part of an em dash phrase. That comment could just as well have been enclosed in parentheses, but as it was applying to artificiality I thought an aside (a la Twain, White, et al.) would maintain an appositive nature by way of example. You are correct in assuming “making love” in this case refers to sex, however. In particular, I am thinking about Viagra and Levitra, an abundance of pleasure instruments and lubricants, and the wide variety of new takes on hooking up (including match.com, etc.) and on the world’s oldest profession. But since we’ve already spent too much thought on that which is not the main idea or the author’s purpose, I must admit to carelessly leading the reader into thoughts of sex and organic consciousness. Apparently, the Parks & Recreation Department had laid underground wiring so that they can install Christmas lights throughout the park in December. That’s really about all there is to this little ditty. I just wanted to share my discovery. rwmiller