so much misery
in the world
man’s capacity
to inflict pain & suffering
upon fellow man
near infinite
when you think y’ve seen
the worst of the darkest depths
the human heart has to show
every day
a new headline
showers us w/ newly shed blood
terrorize me w/ knowledge
swing that machete
and make my head roll
so that i may gain some insight into y’r plight
and you my reciprocal sympathy thereof
board the peak-hour bus
make sure to strap on y’r
suicide vest
and detonate y’rself
so that i may be better educated
as to the nuances of what is
so easily overlooked
our limitless bloodlust
demands nothing less
take me as y’r hostage
so that
–thru Stockholm Syndrome–
i can acquire
a clarity of mind of which
i’d gone so long w/ out
until you put y’r box-cutter to my throat
Good question - line breaks are an interesting animal to discect. What guides the line-breaks in my poetry? Since the majority I write is free/open-verse in terms of structure, the line-breaks are determined largely organically according to the flow of the poem - I put my ear to the page, so to speak, and listen to what the poem tells me as I’m writing it. So, in that respect, the poem guides the line-breaks. In some cases, I take a more deliberate hand in determing if, when, how and where line-breaks are to appear. Most often, line-breaks in my poetry denote a pause or shift in thought or voice or, sometimes, a new thought all together within the larger thought of the poem itself. Other times, I like to insert line-breaks in the middle of a thought (i.e: letting a line continue from the end of one stanza into the start of the next stanza). I also occasionally write more strictly structured poems like sonnets, sestinas, haiku (et. al.) that require line-breaks relative to the rules of writing in that form. As per your last question, line-breaks in my poetry do usually correspond to how I would like them read aloud - a breathing space as Ginsberg would say.
I hope that was helpful,
lhw - AKA: The Straight-faced Clown AKA: M.C. Tape-Hiss