The air is dark, the night is sad,
I lie sleepless and I groan.
Nobody cares when a man goes mad:
He is sorry, God is glad.
Shadow changes into bone.
Every shadow has a name;
When I think of mine I moan,
I hear rumors of such fame.
Not for pride, but only shame,
Shadow changes into bone.
When I blush I weep for joy,
And laughter drops from me like a stone:
The aging laughter of the boy
To see the ageless dead so coy.
Shadow changes into bone.
Ginsberg was a prolific writer who also championed gay rights and anti-war movements, protesting the Vietnam War and coining the phrase "Flower Power." Even with his countercultural background, he became recognized as one of American's foremost writers and artistic icons. He died on April 5, 1997, at age 70.
This is a refrain poem because at the end of each stanza Ginsberg repeats "shadow changes into bone". A refrain is a repeated part of a poem, particularly when it comes either at the end of a stanza or between two stanzas.
I think the poem is saying how Ginsberg use to be a well known person until he did something to mess it up. After the mistake he made everyone is talking about him, saying he is a disgrace. It also says that he felt like he was becoming a shadow, always behind someone and not seen for it really is. One day he was enlightened and he found inner happiness with himself.
I chose this photo because in the poem Ginsberg talks about people saying rumors about him. Saying he was no longer famous or prideful, but full of shame.