Birefringence
Birefringence
Original Text
Christian Bök, Crystallography, revised edn. (Toronto: Coach House Books, 2003): 36.
2blowtorch scars on metal,
3wings of iridescent
4insects,
6See in stained-glass windows
8broken slides of hoarfrost
9crystals
10magnified through polarizers.
11See in gasoline rainbows
12eyes plucked from peacock fans
13fuelling dreams of burning
14asphalt.
15Words kaleidoscope together.
16Houseflies
17see the world through gemstones.
Notes
1] The title means "(the strength of) a double refraction." Back to Line
5] literally, "northern lights, as at dawn": shifting displays of multi-coloured luminescence, associated with electrical waves at the northern magnetic pole. Back to Line
7] gels: semi-solids, a solid being dispersed in a liquid (OED). Back to Line
Publication Start Year
2003
RPO poem Editors
Ian Lancashire
RPO Edition
2010
Rhyme
Form
Special Copyright
"Birefringence" © Christian Bök. Printed gratis, and specifically for <i>Representative Poetry Online</i>,
with permission of the author. As published in <i>Crystallography</i>, published in book form
by Coach House Press, Toronto. Any other use, including reproduction for any purposes,
educational or otherwise, will require explicit written permission from Christian Bök.