"A Teasing Riddle" by Leopold Egg‘A Sonnet Riddle’ by Sharon Zhou The Society February 3, 2018 Poetry, Riddles 11 Comments I’m born from a forked tongue’s hissing mutter, An ungrounded half-truth, forceless and tame. Just like a spark struck from flint I shudder At greater forces, a delicate flame, But human speech kindles my weak ember, And soon I blaze through villages and towns. Baring secrets for all to remember, I scorch olive branches and melt gold crowns. Lies to men I feed with ferocity, Charming them all with my smoldering gaze. They burn with rage, shame, curiosity, As I conceal them in my thick grey haze. ___Yet when lucid Truth in the morning wakes, ___She cools with dewdrops my searing mistakes. Post your answer in the comment section below. Sharon Zhou is a graduate of both the Classics and computer science departments at Harvard University. Currently, she is pursuing doctoral studies at Stanford University in human-computer interaction and artificial intelligence. Read more about her here. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. CODEC Stories:Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) 11 Responses E. V. Wyler February 3, 2018 You’ve written a powerful, timely and timeless, poem. Love it! ✅ Reply Fr. Richard Libby February 3, 2018 Gossip? Reply Joe Tessitore February 3, 2018 “Gossip” sounds like a winner I was wondering about “fake news” Reply James A. Tweedie February 3, 2018 I also guessed “fake news” but gossip is good, too. Reply martin February 5, 2018 I was thinking rumors, the grapevine, hearsay, scuttlebutt … Reply Carl Byron February 6, 2018 This will seem like a wild, wide reach: but this sounds like a nightmare. Reply Kimon February 7, 2018 I’m not sure about the answer (i’m so terrible at riddles anyway), but I’m sure this is truly beautiful, Sharon. Reply Jiyoung February 7, 2018 Sounds like Rumor (Fama)! Reply Sharon Zhou February 7, 2018 [Author] Thank you for all your responses and enthusiasm! Rumor is correct, as are gossip and most relevantly, fake news. Most precisely, the answer is fama, inspired by Virgil’s Aeneid. Reply Carl Byron February 8, 2018 Dear Sharon: I knew I was overthinking this: but it is both exceptionally wise and very timely. we’re entering a period where even the most respected media are broadcasting stories before any of the facts have been assembled. As the horrendous results unfold, your poem becomes a very serious warning for us all to watch what gets spoken. Very well done! Thank you for this. Reply Sharon Zhou February 8, 2018 Yes, your response of nightmare certainly points to something darker that rumor and fake news today forebode. May Truth of some form wake us from the nightmare. Thank you so much, Carl Byron, for your comments and conversation! Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Captcha loading...In order to pass the CAPTCHA please enable JavaScript. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Carl Byron February 6, 2018 This will seem like a wild, wide reach: but this sounds like a nightmare. Reply
Kimon February 7, 2018 I’m not sure about the answer (i’m so terrible at riddles anyway), but I’m sure this is truly beautiful, Sharon. Reply
Sharon Zhou February 7, 2018 [Author] Thank you for all your responses and enthusiasm! Rumor is correct, as are gossip and most relevantly, fake news. Most precisely, the answer is fama, inspired by Virgil’s Aeneid. Reply
Carl Byron February 8, 2018 Dear Sharon: I knew I was overthinking this: but it is both exceptionally wise and very timely. we’re entering a period where even the most respected media are broadcasting stories before any of the facts have been assembled. As the horrendous results unfold, your poem becomes a very serious warning for us all to watch what gets spoken. Very well done! Thank you for this. Reply
Sharon Zhou February 8, 2018 Yes, your response of nightmare certainly points to something darker that rumor and fake news today forebode. May Truth of some form wake us from the nightmare. Thank you so much, Carl Byron, for your comments and conversation!
