Bluebird by+Charles Bukowsk

[|Charles Bukowski]
there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out but I'm too tough for him, I say, stay in there, I'm not going to let anybody see you. there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out but I pour whiskey on him and inhale cigarette smoke and the whores and the bartenders and the grocery clerks never know that he's in there. there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out but I'm too tough for him, I say, stay down, do you want to mess me up? you want to screw up the works? you want to blow my book sales in Europe? there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out but I'm too clever, I only let him out at night sometimes when everybody's asleep. I say, I know that you're there, so don't be sad. then I put him back, but he's singing a little in there, I haven't quite let him die and we sleep together like that with our secret pact and it's nice enough to make a man weep, but I don't weep, do you?

Suggested Symbolism: bluebird= emotions cigarettes, whiskey, whores, etc.= things he uses to cover his emotions


 * 1) The structure of the poem is stanzas that all start with the same starting line (there’s a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out).
 * 2) The key words/patterns are there’s a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out that start each stanza.
 * 3) Vocab- 1. Weep- to shed tears of sadness


 * 1) What is going on in the poem is that a man is talking about another side of him that he doesn’t like to let people see.
 * 2) The literary speaker (the person speaking in the poem) is Charles Bukowski.
 * 3) The dominant images made (description, 5 senses) are he inhales cigarette smoke.


 * 1) The poet’s attitude toward the subject is that he has this alternate side to him just he doesn’t think others will like it.
 * 2) The authors diction (use of big words) and employment of poetic devices conveys that he wanted everybody to be able to understand what he was talking about, not just a mature audience.