Comparison of Sinister and Rich Poems

Bucky Sinister and Adrienne Rich are two poets who share little if anything in common. These two people are not only separated by a generation, but a whole country as well, with Sinister hailing from the West Coast and Rich from the East. As such, their earlier lives stand in sharp contrast to one another. Rich was raised in a cultured and educated household and later went on to become a wife and mother of three, while Sinister had a slightly less traditional upbringing and even spent some years dabbling in the punk circuit. These two people also have found inspiration from different sources. Rich was influenced by writers such as William Blake, John Keats and Lord Tennyson, while Sinister actually finds inspiration for his storyteller comics from people such as Richard Pryor, Bill Hicks and Charles Bukowski.

However as each poet grew older, more similarities can be found. Both possess a strong sense of self-expression. This is something that was discovered in the course of their lives and then later developed and reflected through their work, whether it was verbal or written. In particular, Sinister’s poem “The Other Universe of Bruce Wayne” and “Diving into the Wreck” by Rich demonstrate a strong and intriguing common idea. These two poems use the loss of superficial perceptions and physical trappings as a mode of clearer self-realization. Since rigid traditional definitions cause society to impose social roles and rules which encourage people to unknowingly misrepresent themselves, a complete reassessment must be achieved by removing oneself from the established and familiar mindset.

Starting with basic fundamentals, “The Other Universe of Bruce Wayne” and “Diving into the Wreck” both reflect the real world in that traditional and restrictive definitions are present. In Sinister’s poem, the definitions that he writes about are very specific and limited to one man, Bruce Wayne. Bruce’s “definition” is Batman. His crime fighting alter ego is the definitive aspect of his character, and to protect his more mundane daytime persona, he is forced to behave a certain way in society and restrict himself from crossing certain boundaries.

In Rich’s poem, she alludes to the tradition of gender typing, or the habit of categorizing what is male and what is female. Gender typing has been a part of human culture and history for such a long time that it has unconsciously become ingrained in the minds of people around the world. Rich refers to this phenomenon as “the book of myths” (line 1). The role of the man and the woman have been accepted and passed down for so many generations in so many cultures that people neither question them nor remember clearly why they began.

This problem is shared with the traditional, DC Comic-created Batman, whose image as the Dark Knight is maintained to this day by millions of fans around the world. Multiple generations have grown up idolizing this mysterious vigilante, and though his character has been modified and repackaged over the years to appeal to younger audiences, his character, back-story and essence have essentially remained constant. Elements such as the “Batmobile…butler…crimefighting” (Sinister) are smaller identifying marks that contribute to the complete Batman image. As with gender typing, because the majority of society insists on clinging to these narrow-minded views, they are preserved and forced onto future generations.

These roles and rules that are associated with Batman have hindered Bruce Wayne to the point that while his glamorous, generous, playboy attitude while appealing to audiences, is not very realistic. By writing “The Other Universe of Bruce Wayne”, Sinister is suggesting that if Batman is removed from the pages of a comic and the magic of Hollywood is washed away, a more believable and vulnerable human will emerge. Some of Sinister’s ideas, such as Bruce Wayne who “drinks alone in his trailer home in Arkansas…ain’t that lucky in love” (Sinister) and who experiences “chronic pain” (Sinister) are certainly unconventional, but who is to say that Sinister is completely incorrect? Sinister’s Bruce Wayne is very human in comparison to his larger-than-life traditional self. The idea of Bruce Wayne being afflicted with such mundane problems and slightly worse than average luck is a refreshing and captivating perspective and speculates as to the man behind the mask of both Batman and Bruce Wayne.

There is no proof or reason to continue believing in facades such as Batman, Bruce Wayne, Man and Woman because all that it would take to reveal the true nature of this “book of myths” (Rich 1) is to simply stop acting according to its dictates. However, most fail to see this, and only people such as Rich come to the realization that the opportunity “is always there/hanging innocently/…Otherwise/ it is a piece of maritime floss/ some sundry equipment” (lines 14-21). People are very willing and eager to ignore the truth or overlook the opportunity to discover the truth for fear that will be discovered or how society will react. The very act of scuba diving is a very appropriate analogy for this idea. The ocean is a deep and largely unexplored terrain that creates a sense of wonder and trepidation in human hearts. Submersion into water and the process of slowly traveling further down are acts of isolation from the familiar, which is an effective tool for reflection.

The message of the importance of self-reflection is echoed in Sinister’s poem as well. By isolating Bruce Wayne from all of the elements that are normally associated with him, Sinister tries to discover who Bruce Wayne could really be if he was allowed to separate himself remove himself from his life as Gotham’s vigilante and wealthy entrepreneur. On the other hand, Rich’s poem stresses that society as a whole should participate in a serious self-reflection of its established rules and values in order to create a new era of progressive change and thought. Still, Sinister’s idea of focusing on an individual still holds considerable merit. Change begins at the individual level and can spark a revolution of both thought and action. This is the goal of many writers no matter whether the change that results is personal or universal.