3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Divine Salt, February 18, 2005
This review is from: The Divine Salt (Paperback)
In Peter Blair's collection of poems The Divine Salt, Blair's depiction of life as an aide at the Saint Francis mental ward seems uniquely realistic and disturbing. In facing the so-called "insanity" of the institutionalized, we force ourselves to face our own sense of sanity. In a postmodern world, where the center cannot hold, people lose a sense of their identity and feel lost in a spiraling state of existence. To deal with this, we each create our own sense of reality, and Blair's poetry forces the world to ask itself what insanity really is.
Could insanity be his description in the poem "The Divine Salt" of St. Francis as Brother Bernard stands over top of him "one foot on his mouth/ and one on his neck...[walking] over him three times saying,/ Lie there you country lout,/ you worthless creature"? After all, the village felt he was obviously insane to be doing so much penance. Blair puts forth an interesting debate. St. Francis was originally viewed insane, but now is hailed as a saint "nourished by the divine salt." Therefore, are those we perceive as mentally unstable simply possessive of a self-awareness that the rest of us are lacking? If this is true, do we have a moral or ethical responsibility towards these individuals? If we do, Blair points out that this is obviously not observed by most who work with these "patients." In "Parables of Perfect Joy," a hospital aide, who serves as the protagonist that links the poems together, strives to provide what those in a mental care facility should receive: care. It is such a simple concept, yet those who should be doing the caring do not appear to have any real interest in healing broken people.
Interestingly, many of the cases that Blair presents to the reader exhibit examples of people who have lead relatively normal lives, but, as a consequence, have experienced the inevitable "snap"-the breakdown, the sense of desperation. "The Party" shows how a regular guy, Jim Staub, has become disillusioned by the postmodern, conflict driven world. A Vietnam vet, Jim has seen more than his fair share of brutality. If he were in "the unit," as Blair's persona calls it, he would be "in the quiet room." Instead, Jim is in the real world, where there are no quiet rooms, where the only place to escape is the outside world. Therefore, not only is the "crazy unit" the world of Hieronymous Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights-so is the outside world. This being the case, we all become possible next victims to the meltdown that puts us in the mental ward of St. Francis. In fact, such victims live among us everyday.
Blair's poetry is profoundly straightforward and symbolic in its verse. Yet in its simplicity of diction, fantastic images and allusions abound throughout the collection. From Bosch to Tolkien to modern commercial icons, Blair presents a world that appears real and fantastical at the same time. One feels drawn to sympathy for those simply locked away because the world refuses to deal with them as anomalous, and readers will virtually cheer on the concerned, self-aware care and attention of the protagonist. Ultimately, The Divine Salt begs the question: is insanity so crazy?
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poetry at it's Best!, July 6, 2006
This review is from: The Divine Salt (Paperback)
Inside this book you will discover a part of history that will entertain you and even create nostalgia about events and places that should always be remembered about Pittsburgh. The stories are easy reading and the book was in excellent condition by the time it arrived at my door.
I recommend it for anyone interested in reading about Pittsburgh from the heart of the poet that experienced what he wrote about. Other famous Pittsburgh poets enjoy his works and the style in which he writes just as much as I do, so I highly recommend taking a look.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Book Will Change Your Life!, October 30, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: The Divine Salt (Paperback)
A strong but innocent young man takes a job in a psych ward in Pittsburgh. Humoring the harmless inmates, restraining the violent ones, listening to their stories, the young man is overcome by pity and compassion, and he is overwhelmed by the recognition of his own powerlessness. These stirring experiences become the basis of his spiritual awakening and lead to his vision for all mankind. Read this book. It will change your life.
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