Michael Ondaatjes The Collected Works of Billy the Kid Essay -- Colle

The Perception of Violence in Michael Ondaatjes The self-contained whole kit and boodle of billy club the Kid A question that arises in almost any forte of art, be it music, film or literature, is whether or not the depiction of abandon is merely gratuitous or whether it is a legitimate artistic expression. at that place can be no doubt that Michael Ondaatjes long poem The Collected Works of he-goat the Kid is a violent work, notwithstanding accepted factors should be kept in mind before passing it remove as an attempt to wound and titillate certainly, the poem does both of these, but they are not the primary purpose of the work. For maven thing, social consideration needs to be considered Billy lived in the Wild West, a time associated with epitome wars, shoot-outs and great train robberies. The entire legend of Billy the Kid has been built around his criminal activities and notorious reputation indeed, the more than popular this myth becomes, the more people he is acc used of having murdered. If anything, it was a cultural fascination with force that created the legend, perhaps even more so than anything the real Billy ever did. Michael Ondaatje comments on this phenomenon and actually offers an alternative day-dream of who Billy the Kid was perhaps he was not just a blood-thirsty killer but a man who, due to circumstance and gracious nature, was continually being pushed over the edge. Ondaatje is more concerned with the motivations behind the acts of violence than the acts of violence themselves A motive? some reasoning we can implement to explain all this violence. Was there a source for all this? yup - (54). If they shock, it is to shock the readers out of complicity and encourage them to think about the nature of violence and their stimulate capacity for it. Though it is more ... ...nstitutes a fit subject for poetry. If love life is deemed suitable, should the expression of violence be any less so? both are part of the human experien ce indeed, it is hard to imagine one existing without the other. As Billy says, I am here with the range for everything (72), a range which includes hands that need the rub of metal/ those senses that/ that motivation to crash things with an axe (72). Michael Ondaatje gives us this range and then leaves it up to us to define our own edge what are we capable of?.... What is our potential? Works Cited and ConsultedMundwiler, Leslie. Michael Ondaatje Word, Image, Imagination. Vancouver Talonbooks, 1984. Ondaatje, Michael. The Collected Works of Billy the Kid. Toronto Anansi, 1970. Solecki, surface-to-air missile. Introduction. Spider Blues Essays on Michael Ondaatje. Ed. Sam Solecki. Montral Vhicule, 1985. 7-11.