Fear, a Prey to Survival



Fear as messenger.
Enemy of lust for life.
How it defeats life.
How it shows no decency.
Respects no laws, conventions.

Seeks your weakest spot.
Pursues it with greatest ease.
Blinding your vision.
And your survival instincts.
A prey to your existence.

About this poem

“Life of Pi” is a Canadian published philosophical novel by Yann Martel, published in 2001, with Piscine Molitor “Pi” Patel, a Tamil Indian boy, as protagonist, who explores and ponders on the meaning of life, and on issues of spirituality and metaphysics. This Tamil boy is a child metaphysician. “Life of Pi” is a composition of axiomatic statements about life and human behavior. This two-stanza Tanka poem conveys some of Martel’s sentiments about fear, and how it is a deadly adversary of human existence and the impetus for human survival.  

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Written on April 19, 2022

Submitted by karlcfolkes on April 19, 2022

Modified on March 05, 2023

15 sec read
356

Quick analysis:

Scheme XAAXX XXXXX
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 253
Words 52
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 5, 5

Karl Constantine FOLKES

Retired educator of Jamaican ancestry with a lifelong interest in composing poetry dealing particularly with the metaphysics of self-reflection; completed a dissertation in Children’s Literature in 1991 at New York University entitled: An Analysis of Wilhelm Grimm’s “Dear Mili” Employing Von Franzian Methodological Processes of Analytical Psychology. The subject of the dissertation concerned the process of Individuation. more…

All Karl Constantine FOLKES poems | Karl Constantine FOLKES Books

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Discuss the poem Fear, a Prey to Survival with the community...

3 Comments
  • karlcfolkes
    Symmetry58,
    Your pen name depicts a precinct or haven where fear finds no comfort.
    LikeReply1 year ago
  • Symmetry58
    I love this poem just as I loved the movie Life if Pi - seen it three times. I love the depictions of characters by Pi of how each was exemplary of an animal that suited its character and nature best. I found it very profound and beautiful just as I found your poem, Karl. Thank you so much for sharing your gift. 
    LikeReply1 year ago
  • abielias1
    "fear is the mind-killer"
    LikeReply1 year ago

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"Fear, a Prey to Survival" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/125170/fear,-a-prey-to-survival>.

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