Literature Annotations
 |
Holub, Miroslav |
| Genre | Poem |
| Keywords | Human Worth, Medical Ethics, Medical Research, Pain, Suffering |
| Summary | The poet expresses pity for all the poor, poor animals--for dogs, for mice, for earthworms, even for the "protozoons / that sway their cilia / so desperately." On the other hand, "patients / with progressive amyotrophic lateral sclerosis can just / fuck off." They should go live in the world of Hieronymus Bosch. [21 lines] |
| Commentary | This piece is sharply ironic. It seems to be saying that animal rights folks love animals more than they love people, especially sick people. This is especially relevant to medical research. Why harm the poor animals by developing an animal model for degenerative neurological disease? Who cares about patients with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)? "They shouldn't have been born." |
| Source | Vanishing Lung Syndrome |
| Publisher | Oberlin College Press |
| Edition | 1990 |
| Place Published | Oberlin, Ohio |
| Miscellaneous | Translated by David Young and Dana Habrova. |
| Annotated by | Coulehan, Jack |
| Date of Entry | 10/27/99 |
| Last Revised | 11/29/99 |