The Bitter Creature

Stephen Crane's poem " In the desert" is quite unusual. The poem might speak of a creature in a desert but there is more to the poem than the creature just eating it's heart. Creatures in the desert or anyone to speak of tend to feel isolated when there is no one around.

In the desert 

I saw a creature, naked, bestial,

Who, squatting upon the ground,

Held his heart in his hands,

And ate of it.

Creatures in the desert have no one, being isolated and being left alone, they begin to feel this bitter feeling to life. The poem is not just about the creatures but is about all in general. We tend to feel this bitter feeling to life when we have no one around. Life kind of holds no meaning when there is no one to share it with.

"But I like it

Because it is bitter,

And because it is my heart."

If one is not loved, then all they really have to love is their own self. Not having someone around to share life with, kind makes one feel miserable. It is easy to say for one that they like being the way they are not but deep down if they have no one to share their life with , they truly are living a life they do not want. Living an isolated life, only causes one to miss out the great parts to life. The creature in this poem might say he enjoys eating his heart but truly he hates it. 

I enjoyed this poem very. I like open form poems very because it does require a deep analysis of the poems. The poems are very simple but hold a deep meaning.