Poetry interpretation,CLOONEY THE CLOWN,?

I really like this poem, I don't know how to put my reaction torwards it in the right precise words. It seems to relate to the world more, than Shel's usual poems.











Clooney the Clown





I'll tell you the story of Cloony the Clown


Who worked in a circus that came through town.


His shoes were too big and his hat was too small,


But he just wasn't, just wasn't funny at all.


He had a trombone to play loud silly tunes,


He had a green dog and a thousand balloons.


He was floppy and sloppy and skinny and tall,


But he just wasn't, just wasn't funny at all.


And every time he did a trick,


Everyone felt a little sick.


And every time he told a joke,


Folks sighed as if their hearts were broke.


And every time he lost a shoe,


Everyone looked awfully blue.


And every time he stood on his head,


Everyone screamed, "Go back to bed!"


And every time he made a leap,


Everybody fell asleep.


And every time he ate his tie,


Everyone began to cry.


And Cloony could not make any money


Simply because he was not funny.





One day he said, "I'll tell this town


How it feels to be an unfunny clown."


And he told them all why he looked so sad,


And he told them all why he felt so bad.


He told of Pain and Rain and Cold,


He told of Darkness in his soul,


And after he finished his tale of woe,


Did everyone cry? Oh no, no, no,


They laughed until they shook the trees


With "Hah-Hah-Hahs" and "Hee-Hee-Hees."


They laughed with howls and yowls and shrieks,


They laughed all day, they laughed all week,


They laughed until they had a fit,


They laughed until their jackets split.


The laughter spread for miles around


To every city, every town,


Over mountains, 'cross the sea,


From Saint Tropez to Mun San Nee.


And soon the whole world rang with laughter,


Lasting till forever after,


While Cloony stood in the circus tent,


With his head drooped low and his shoulders bent.


And he said,"THAT IS NOT WHAT I MEANT -


I'M FUNNY JUST BY ACCIDENT."


And while the world laughed outside.


Cloony the Clown sat down and cried.

Poetry interpretation,CLOONEY THE CLOWN,?
Actually it makes me feel sad. I feel sorry for Clooney. How sad it is to work so hard to do something and to feel so unsuccessful with it. I feel his discouragement and sadness.
Reply:It portrays a fictitious clown as a symbol of frustration, rejection, and the ironies that may arise when you fail to get the response from people that you are aiming for. Pathos and humor are delicately and precisely balanced in this poem.
Reply:This poem is about despair. Clooney is a clown. He's not an accountant. Not a baker. blah blah blah. He's a clown. He's meant to be funny. If a teacher cannot teach, maybe s/he should find a different profession. If a clown is not funny. Is there anywhere else to go?





My feelings toward this poem are a mirror of my feelings toward the world. Too many people are in this life for themselves alone. Not giving a single care to those who suffer, those who wish be heard. To be laughed at is one of the worst feelings a person with a lost soul can ever experience.



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