American Gods | Teen Ink

American Gods

April 26, 2009
By Captain-Tightpants GOLD, Lawrenceville, Georgia
Captain-Tightpants GOLD, Lawrenceville, Georgia
18 articles 17 photos 19 comments

Old gods lie abandoned
Battered in the bloody dust
Left without a second though
As their clergy arrives here

Given up for American Gods
The god of credit card
of internet, of gossip
The god of celebrity
of entitlement, of pharmaceuticals,
of casual sex

The deities of Tele-(vision and phone)

Do those old gods survive?
The god of virtue
of creativity, of inspiration
The god of life
of history, of health,
of love

The deities of our fathers

Do you remember them?

Athena lies dead
Ravaged by internet

Hermes, quick wit
Done in by highway

Osiris sleeps, bound
Held by the magics of chemistry

Zeus, thunderstruck
Power grids hold him

Tyr lost his other hand
In the blast of an atom bomb

Ares yet thrives
Wandering the middle east and Africa

Aphrodite enslaved
In the eyes of Hollywood

Cellphone spreads the word
Television is communion
Internet the bible
Banks, your churches
Convenience your reward

The backwards ways
Of the gods of old
Scorned by the laity
Of the American Gods

The monuments of laser light
The gospel of the anchorman
The oracle of stockbrokers
The true cross of video
Even the saints of industry

They claim to preserve
No oil, no meat, no impact
Yet their forefathers die

Your American Gods
Have come to save you
From creativity
From having to think

Twinkies, the body
Coke, the blood
For the concealment of sin

Those American Gods
Start a mission in Europe
Another in China
As the spirits flee

The American Gods
Fight for dominance
To become
The Modern Gods

they hunt down resistors
Through GPS
They destroy them
Through anti-psychotics

Those Modern Gods
Like AIDS and Internet
Invade the world
Of the fallen gods


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This article has 12 comments.


on Feb. 24 2011 at 12:36 am
_butters_ SILVER, Trinidad, Colorado
6 articles 18 photos 27 comments

Favorite Quote:
Your life is an occassion, rise to it.
~Mr. Edward Magorium

I love it michael :) very true in all senses

on Oct. 20 2010 at 3:09 pm
amandap PLATINUM, Midlothian, Virginia
31 articles 0 photos 183 comments
Here I am returning the comment: I quite loved this, it was very unique. I myself take a mythology/Latin class, so I really enjoyed seeing a writing including the old-as-age dieties themselves, nobody seems to care about them anymore. You have wonderful description and ways of conveying words into an easy-to-read form that is yet mature at the same time. keep up the good work!

on Aug. 18 2010 at 9:28 pm
Karma_Chameleon SILVER, English, Indiana
8 articles 0 photos 236 comments

Favorite Quote:
To be able to say "I love you" one must first be able to say "I" - Ayn Rand

Hm, yes, I can understand that.  It really wasn't a big deal though, it is still one of my favorites on the site.

on Aug. 18 2010 at 12:15 pm
Captain-Tightpants GOLD, Lawrenceville, Georgia
18 articles 17 photos 19 comments
I considered it but I really think that the chages in language would break up the impact I was trying to create in the piece. Though I do tend to try and not use the same word twice unless it's intentional.

on Jun. 7 2010 at 4:44 pm
Karma_Chameleon SILVER, English, Indiana
8 articles 0 photos 236 comments

Favorite Quote:
To be able to say "I love you" one must first be able to say "I" - Ayn Rand

This poem was rather interesting, and overall it is quite good.  I enjoyed the smooth revelation of the idea behind the poem; the juxtaposition between the names of the various Gods / Goddesses and modern means of destruction (i.e. the atom bomb) was unique and effective.  The poem had a smooth flow and rhythm throughout.  One piece of critique though – I would suggest trying to replace the word “Gods” with another word on occasion, particularly in the last four lines.  This would, at least for me, help to improve the general flow of the poem by adding a bit of variety to the vocabulary.  Of course, if you feel that it belongs in the poem as is, by all means keep it.
Overall, this is a very nice poem, and from what I can see from your collection of works, you are an author of great talent and promise.

on Jan. 31 2010 at 3:06 pm
firefly116 BRONZE, Southern Pines, North Carolina
4 articles 0 photos 10 comments
I think apathy is the real bane of our modern society. (great poem btw, loved the descriptive vocab.)

on Jan. 29 2010 at 12:03 pm
You are so right. Everything old and prescious has become ineffective and worthless. It's the perfect poem on the current downfall of our world. Keep writing.

on Dec. 21 2009 at 3:36 pm
Scare001 BRONZE, Tinley Park, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 5 comments
Going to start a poetry contest in groups, hoping you could possibly join and maybe even be my partner in it. Contest will be in contests forum.

Michael said...
on Oct. 12 2009 at 4:50 pm
I'm reading now actually.

on Oct. 11 2009 at 10:28 am
skywriter11 GOLD, Glenmont, New York
16 articles 1 photo 18 comments
Have you read the book by Neil Gaiman? It's awesome. Really great job with imagery-love the bit about what's happened to all of the old gods.

on Jun. 13 2009 at 9:47 pm
Captain-Tightpants GOLD, Lawrenceville, Georgia
18 articles 17 photos 19 comments
I don't think we've become cruel, just affectless.

on Jun. 12 2009 at 10:57 pm
ShernayB. DIAMOND, Southfield, Michigan
62 articles 1 photo 881 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Some things will never change"---Tupac

Whoa!! You know a lot about how the world has become so cruel. This is truly amazing. I couldn't have put this all together in a poem. Great job!