Defend the Poet

When first reading the poem "Dinosauria, We", I immediately started to think of why Charles Bukowski was painting such a sad and depressing view of the world, and I didn't really agree with the idea that he was writing about reality. But after really looking at the poem, many of the things he says are true, many just wouldn't believe them because people like to look at the good sides to life and ignore the bad. Charles Bukowski did the opposite.Even though Bukowski projects an apocalyptic-like future for the world in his poem, all of the reasons behind this prediction are events that are currently occuring in today's world.

"As the oily fish spit out their oily prey..." which instantly reminds me of the oil spill in the Gulf. "Into fist fights that end as shootings and knifings" which we see and hear about weekly, living in Chicago. "Into a country where the jails are full and the madhouses closed"...reminding me of the news story that inmates are being released purely because there is no room for them.

So although the poet uses dark and depressing words, although he foreshadows an end to the world similar to that in The Road, he is talking about everyday truths that many people overlook.