DDCPoetry

Original poem reprinted online here:  "I" by Michael Ryan Originally read: July 10, 2013 More information about the Poet: Michael Ryan "When did I learn the word 'I'? / What a mistake."  The opening lines of the poem is humorous.  But the humor is self referential and also language based.   This poem plays not only with the definition, but also visual representation. "For some, / it may be a placeholder, / for me it's a contagion."    The speaker contextualizes the usage of "I" with "for some" and "for me".  The differences between inferences.  Note how the "for some" part focuses on a placeholder -- not so much of a definition of the self.  For the "for me" part the contagion line is more tricky.  Contagion -- harmful spreading, but not so much in this poem as far as length, but possibility.  The poem looks at many different aspects of "I" but not in a personal way. "For some, it...