Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Alan Dugan's poem "On Rape Unattempted" confronts complex themes of desire, frustration, and the psychological turmoil of unrequited passion through an intensely personal narrative. The poem navigates the inner turmoil of a speaker obsessed with an elusive woman, exploring his emotional extremity and the ways in which it manifests. This narrative probes into the darker realms of human emotion and societal issues, particularly how intense desire can sometimes blur moral boundaries.

The opening lines, “'Be alive,' they say, when I am so alive I ache with it so much I do not look alive but chase that cock-teaser till my balls so ache with her,” instantly establish a sense of the speaker's agonizing vitality. His life force is overwhelmingly directed towards an unfulfilled desire, leading him to a state of physical and emotional pain that paradoxically makes him appear less alive. The raw language used here portrays a crude expression of male desire and frustration, pointing to a toxic obsession rather than genuine affection.

The narrative continues with the speaker's expression of his frustration, escalating to the point where he grotesquely "fall[s] groaning into speech and write[s] the one word, 'Rape!' on subway lavatory walls." This act of writing "Rape!" as graffiti is significant—it reflects his acknowledgment of the taboo and violent nature of his thoughts. It’s an externalization of his internal turmoil, an admission of his darkest impulses in the most anonymous and public way.

The object of his desire is described in contrasting and ambiguous terms. She dances and sings around him, uttering phrases like "Yes and no and maybe so and everywhere all over." This depiction portrays her as both tantalizing and dismissive, engaged in a dance of attraction that is never fulfilled, perpetually keeping the speaker in a state of confusion and longing.

The speaker’s exclamation, "Oh my nonsense: she's the truth; I cry the sentence of the Fool: 'I don't know what to do!'" reveals his self-awareness and self-mocking tone. He recognizes his folly, likening himself to the archetype of the Fool, uncertain and lost in his actions. Her mixed signals—her left eye winking "Yes," her right eye staring "No," and her ever-smiling face—further contribute to his disorientation and despair.

The final depiction of the woman as "Miss Unknowable, 1964" encapsulates her as an enigma, permanently out of reach and fundamentally misunderstood. The reference to her as a kind of pageant title or a fleeting icon of a particular year suggests that her essence is both dated and elusive, a symbol of unattainable and idealized femininity.

"On Rape Unattempted" is a disturbing, raw exploration of obsessive desire and the confusion it breeds. Dugan does not shy away from exposing the darker facets of the human psyche. Instead, he offers a complex, if unsettling, portrait of a man caught in the throes of an agonizing emotional conflict, underscored by societal expectations of masculinity and sexual conquest. This poem challenges readers to confront uncomfortable truths about desire, power dynamics, and the thin lines between attraction, obsession, and potential violence.

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