Let Me Help You Out There

I found some questions that need answering. Don't you worry, they're all based on the same subject: Billy Collins lous-- er, I mean, inspirational poem.

Why do you look at the love poem like it is a joke?
Believe it or not, some people find love is a joke. It is too serious for them to take seriously. But for Billy Collins, I'll give him a break. He may have found the metaphors just as ridiculous as the rest of us so he decided to re-image it for comical purposes. Perhaps he wanted to show what not to do with a love poem. Maybe he wanted to show how some people view love, which can be cynical, insensitive, and serious. Who knows what his reasons were for such a strange poem.

Do you feel that every love poem writer secretly craves similar metaphors to be written about his or herself?
Frankly, I'm not quite sure how the average person would feel about being compared as "the bread in the knife" or " the pigeon on the general's head." These are not flattering and I wonder if the average love poem writer would know that. I would think if a love poem writer was full of love and inspired by it that they would use metaphors expressing themselves in more clearly defined and serious terms. But then again, it depends on the personality of the writer. if he or she is bitter about love and scoffs at it, the metaphors may be more comical. But if he or she is blissfully drowned in the waves of loves, the metaphors may be more endearing. Every writer is different and expresses themselves differently.

Why did you incorporate metaphors about yourself in the poem?
He probably wanted to poke fun at himself. Maybe he wanted to reveal some of his own feelings about love, which would provide some interesting assumptions about his own love life and how successful it may or may not have been. Perhaps he just wanted to give some lively spirit to the poem and give it some fun by being able to laugh at himself. If he was poking at himself, it would suggest what a charismatic character he is. It is not easy to be able to laugh freely at yourself, especially in front of a crowd. But again, these are just theories.

In the end, I didn't fulfill the questions by giving concrete answers. but some of these questions can only be answered by Billy Collins himself without passing judgment behind the ridicul--uh, I mean, fascinating poem.