Revenge & Forgiveness: An Anthology of Poems
(Henry Holt/2004) ISBN 0-8050-7376-0

FROM THE INTRODUCTION

In these pages you’ll find art made of revenge and forgiveness. We’ve all felt angry and said things we later wish we hadn’t. The revenge we take with our words may be momentarily empowering, until the impact of what we’ve said hits home. Consider the weight of vengeful words spoken against someone you care for. Forgiveness, on the other hand, can give one tremendous relief, make us feel, momentarily, pretty sublime. There’s a rush to being forgiven, but also a way in which it can feel embarrassing. To receive forgiveness means we’re also being called to task, and sometimes, I don’t know about you, but I’d rather my act of meanness just be forgotten or ignored.

You’ll find poems about the anger and resulting revenge we feel and take not only against others, but toward ourselves. I hope these poems will help you deepen your understanding of human nature—our strengths and foibles. When we take revenge against another, we lose some of our innocence, some of our humanity. Poetry leads toward transformation. If you write and read, your compassion and understanding expand. Poetry can accompany us on our journeys. It makes one less alone.

These poems are to read—to grapple with, to question. Bring your complex nature to these poems, the part of you that seeks revenge and the part of you that forgives.

REVIEWS

"Inspired by the events of September 11, this excellent anthology illustrates how people deal individually with grief and anger of all types.... [A]ll of the poems speak to the natural human urge to respond to a wrong whether by forgiving or by taking revenge. The range of authors included is vast... The introduction is thoughtful in its discussion of revenge and forgiveness in their various forms. The biographical notes at the end are fascinating and often include quotes from the poets themselves about the works presented in the collection.... Vecchione's goal for this book, to help readers to see themselves and others more clearly, to guide them past pain to understanding, has been beautifully and intelligently reached."
—Starred Review, School Library Journal

HOW TO ORDER

Available at your local bookstore, through
bookshopsantacruz.com or amazon.com

READ AN EXCERPT

Only Cherries

They didn’t want me around
Said I couldn’t have no cherries
Or watch them pick cherries
Or even stand near the table
Where one of those Kultur-Kookie-Klucks
With the big fat-legged smile
Was fixing to pop a nice red cherry
In on top of his gold spoon
You know I don’t like those people
Who act as if a cherry
Was something they’d personally thought up

Kenneth Patchen

Poem

I lived in the first century of world wars.
Most mornings I would be more or less insane.
The newspapers would arrive with their careless stories,
The news would pour out of various devices
Interrupted by attempts to sell products to the unseen.
I would call my friends on other devices;
They would be more or less mad for similar reasons.
Slowly I would get to pen and paper,
Make my poems for others unseen and unborn.
In the day I would be reminded of those men and women,
Brave, setting up signals across vast distances,
Considering a nameless way of living, of almost unimagined values.
As the lights darkened, as the lights of night brightened,
We would try to imagine them, try to find each other,
To construct peace, to make love, to reconcile
Waking with sleeping, ourselves with each other,
Ourselves with ourselves. We would try by any means
To reach the limits of ourselves, to reach beyond ourselves,
To let go the means, to wake.
I lived in the first century of these wars.

Muriel Rukeyser