Modern Day Slaves
Entry by: Tauren
19th May 2017
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Heads bowed in submission to their masters
Their digital portals clutched reverentially in sweating hands
Thumbs poised, or flitting rapidly
Sending offerings of devotion or supplication to their Gods
The Gods, one and Zero;
The Lords of bits and bytes
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Faces uplit by screens reflected in glazed eyes
Eyes oblivious to the world about them
They stumble on, begging for admiration
Spirits soaring with each like,
Withering with every dislike
Remember how we mocked a tearful Sally fields?
“You like me, you really like meâ€
Are you still laughing?
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Praying to the omniscient Demigods Google, Facebook, Instagram
Begging them to intercede on their behalf,
“Make me popular; make complete strangers like me,
My life is nothing without their acceptanceâ€
Do you sneer at them, think yourself better, immune?
Fool; deceive others, never yourself
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Sacrificing their lives to their Gods
Stumbling unheeding into traffic,
Such is their commitment to their Gods
Another life lost to digital slavery
Many more to go
We are incapable of learning
The modern day slaves enter bondage willingly
Not through choice, that illusion of free will
But through enticement, inducement
The digital Gods cannot be sated,
They`re coming for you too
And me,
They want us all
They know our buttons
They have studied us
Resistance is futile
Resistance is futile
Resistance is………………
Heads bowed in submission to their masters
Their digital portals clutched reverentially in sweating hands
Thumbs poised, or flitting rapidly
Sending offerings of devotion or supplication to their Gods
The Gods, one and Zero;
The Lords of bits and bytes
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Faces uplit by screens reflected in glazed eyes
Eyes oblivious to the world about them
They stumble on, begging for admiration
Spirits soaring with each like,
Withering with every dislike
Remember how we mocked a tearful Sally fields?
“You like me, you really like meâ€
Are you still laughing?
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Praying to the omniscient Demigods Google, Facebook, Instagram
Begging them to intercede on their behalf,
“Make me popular; make complete strangers like me,
My life is nothing without their acceptanceâ€
Do you sneer at them, think yourself better, immune?
Fool; deceive others, never yourself
The modern day slaves shuffle about the streets
Sacrificing their lives to their Gods
Stumbling unheeding into traffic,
Such is their commitment to their Gods
Another life lost to digital slavery
Many more to go
We are incapable of learning
The modern day slaves enter bondage willingly
Not through choice, that illusion of free will
But through enticement, inducement
The digital Gods cannot be sated,
They`re coming for you too
And me,
They want us all
They know our buttons
They have studied us
Resistance is futile
Resistance is futile
Resistance is………………
Feedback: Average score: 228 (46%)
Marker comments:
Marker 1
- What I liked about this piece: The use of metaphors; social media having replaced religion.
- Favourite sentence: 'The Gods, one and Zero;
The Lords of bits and bytes' - Feedback: Poem doesn't have a title but one could argue there is not really a need for one. Starts off well but the middle and end are lacking. Each verse is rather repetitive.
Marker 2
- What I liked about this piece: Very topical and thought-provoking.
- Favourite sentence: "Spirits soaring with each like, withering with every dislike"
- Feedback: A satirical piece with some interesting god/slave images. Not necessarily original but still thought-provoking. Easy to read, which is a good thing in some ways, but sometimes it is good for a poem to leave you wondering and questioning different interpretations.
Marker 3
- What I liked about this piece: It's true. All we have to do is look and we see it everywhere.
- Favourite sentence:
Sacrificing their lives to their Gods Stumbling unheeding into traffic. - Feedback: I enjoyed this piece. It reminds me of how I view the poisoned apple.
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