Robert E. Wood teaches in the School of Literature, Communication, and Culture at Georgia Tech. His film studies include essays on Fosse, DePalma, and Verhoeven, as well as The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He is the author of Some Necessary Questions of the Play, a study of Hamlet. His poetry has appeared recently in Blue Fifth Review, Ouroboros, Jabberwock Review, Sojourn, and Prairie Schooner. His chapbook, Gorizia Notebook, was published by Finishing Line Press in August 2009.
Robert Wood
New Yorker Cartoon Dog
He is an ordinary dog—
no Westminster Show poseur
or cocktail party wag.
He summons our nostalgia for that reader
where we learned to see Spot run.
But now he’s found that there is neither
wit nor warmth in human utterance.
“Bad dog” passes all too often for bon mot,
“Good dog” a paltry substitute
for a companionable chat.
When he is off the leash—
checking on e-mail at the office
or having a drink at the corner bar
with a couple of friends—
the dumb show ends.
He has a way of pointing out the obvious,
we tend to listen,
he has an honest face.
Shark Week
One boffo blockbuster and then
his story falls apart. The plot
unfolds, an origami menace
ill-conceived. His talent lies
in circling below, no talk show
gabfest for this mouthpiece. Advocates
and lenders fasten on his salty
coat tails, looking for that edge.
It’s no surprise his sequels flop,
but he keeps on the move.
Not much remains of him to speak of
when the circling stops.
His bones are coral made,
his teeth are souvenirs.
Gas
Edward Hopper 1940
Always this fear of the green dark:
branch and trunk, leaf and stem,
chaotic geometry advancing in the night.
Moon-faced, square-shouldered,
three red pumps stand watch
on the border between light and shadow.
A man in shirtsleeves checks inventory:
air and water, oil and gasoline,
waiting for travelers on the narrow road.
The Mobilgas red Pegasus shield
hangs from a pole already in the grasp
of an encroaching limb.
