Poetry Analysis of John Cooper Clarke

FAR FROM CRAZY PAVEMENTS

...THE TASTE OF SILVER SPOONS

A CLINICAL ARRANGEMENT

...ON A DIRTY AFTERNOON

WHERE THE FECAL GERMS OF MR. FREUD

...ARE RENDERED OBSOLETE

THE LEGAL TERM IS NULL AND VOID

IN THE CASE OF... BEASLEY STREET

-"Silver spoons" is a reference to upper-class living; Silverware is a luxury, and this place is distant from it
-By saying Freud is obsolete, it implies that no philosophies are upheld in this place
-The legal term having no effect; Laws mean nothing
-All of this pertaining to Beasley Street

IN THE CHEAP SEATS WHERE MURDER BREEDS

SOMEBODY IS OUT OF BREATH

SLEEP IS A LUXURY THEY DON'T NEED

...A SNEAK PREVIEW OF DEATH

BELLADONNA IS YOUR FLOWER

MANSLAUGHTER YOUR MEAT

SPEND A YEAR IN A COUPLE OF HOURS

ON THE EDGE OF BEASLEY STREET

-"Cheap seats" means cheap entertainment; The inhabitants probably can afford little more than a 5$ movie
-No one gets any sleep; Sleepless nights are a sign of worry/anxiety; Since it is here "where murder breeds," people probably don't sleep for fear they will be the victim of a crime
-Time seems to flow quickly there because there is little to do but attempt to survive, and time passes slowly as your brain "skips" over familiar actions

WHERE THE ACTION ISN'T

THAT'S WHERE IT IS

STATE YOUR POSITION

VACANCIES EXIST

IN AN X-CERTIFICATE EXERCISE

EX-SERVICEMEN EXCRETE

KEITH JOSEPH SMILES AND A BABY DIES

IN A BOX ON BEASLEY STREET

-"Vacancies exist" shows that many people don't want to live there; they've moved out
-X-certification is a rating for movies with explicit content. Clarke is making an analogy, that if Beasley Street were in a movie, it would bear a triple-X rating for its contents.
-There was much controversy regarding this verse, as Keith Joseph worked in the cabinet while Margaret Thatcher was in office.
-After James Callaghan devalued the British pound, Margaret Thatcher was elected as Prime Minister, and had to deal with the economic decline the devaluation created. Many people held Margaret Thatcher and her cabinet responsible, and thus Keith Joseph would not have been looked upon very highly at the time of this poem
-Keith Joseph himself has been called the "power behind the throne" in relation to Thatcher's policies and political style. Thus, it is not surprising to see Clarke paint him with such a terrible image

FROM THE BOARDING HOUSES AND THE BEDSITS FULL OF

...ACCIDENTS AND FLEAS

SOMEBODY GETS IT

WHERE THE MISSING PERSONS FREEZE

WEARING DEAD MEN'S OVERCOATS

YOU CAN'T SEE THEIR FEET

A RIFF JOINT SHUTS - OPENS UP

RIGHT DOWN ON BEASLEY STREET

-Places where people are meant to live are flea-ridden, disease-filled, etc
-By "accidents" he might mean accidental children, who without loving parents, probably ran away or were put in boarding houses or bedsits
-"gets it" is slang for dies
-"Where missing persons freeze" could mean either a morgue, being where people who go missing and turn up dead would end up, or potentially the bottom of a river, which would be cold and would be the place a murderer would likely dispose of the body
-The overcoats are very long, and go past the feet of those wearing them
-"riff joint" could mean a music club, "riff" referring to a piece of music and "joint" a slang for a meeting place

CARS COLLIDE, COLOURS CLASH

DISASTER MOVIE STUFF

FOR A MAN WITH THE FU MANCHU MOUSTACHE

REVENGE IS NOT ENOUGH

THERE'S A DEAD CANARY ON A SWIVEL SEAT

THERE'S A RAINBOW IN THE ROAD

MEANWHILE ON BEASLEY STREET

SILENCE IS THE CODE

 
-"Cars collide" and "disaster movie stuff" describes that car accidents are frequent, and considering the state of the place so far, they are probably due to impaired driving
-"Colours clash" could refer to either a gang war, as gangs usually choose a colour to identify themselves by, or it could refer to blood from these accidents, the red colour clashing with the black pavement
-"Fu manchu moustache" is a reference to one of his other poems, kung fu international, which describes a fight between the narrator and a man bearing a mustache of the same description

-Wikipedia states "A Fu Manchu moustache is a full, straight moustache that grows downward past the lips and on either side of the chin; and often, the tapered, pointed ends of the moustache hang past the jawline."

-"dead canary" refers to the use of canaries in coal mines. To test for carbon monoxide, and other deadly gases, the miners would carry a canary into the mines, and if it died, they knew there was a dangerous gas and that they must leave. Clarke uses it's postion "on a swivel seat" to imply that even in the offices, where swivel seats would be found, the environment is toxic

-When oils are on a flat surface, the refraction of light makes a rainbow pattern. Thus, "rainbow in the road" refers to oil or gasoline poured out on the pavement, with no one to care to clean it up

-Wikipedia states "A code of silence is a condition in effect when a person opts to withhold what is believed to be vital or important information voluntarily or involuntarily. A more famous example of the code of silence is omerta, the Mafia code of silence." If "Silence is the code" in this place, there is crime of some sort, which everyone turns a blind eye to.

HOT BENEATH THE COLLAR

...AN INSPECTOR CALLS

WHERE THE PERISHING STINK OF SQUALOR

...IMPREGNATES THE WALLS

THE RATS HAVE ALL GOT RICKETS

THEY SPIT THROUGH BROKEN TEETH

THE NAME OF THE GAME IS NOT CRICKET

CAUGHT OUT ON ...BEASLEY STREET  

-"Hot under the collar" is an idiom meaning very angry; the inspector must be shouting angrily
-The place smells terrible
-Rickets is a condition that occurs due to lack of Vitamin D or Calcium digestion. It weakens bones and muscles, and causes dental problems (which explains the "broken teeth"). Wikipedia says "Cases have been reported in Britain in recent years of rickets in children of many social backgrounds caused by insufficient production in the body of vitamin D because the sun's ultraviolet light was not reaching the skin due to use of strong sunblock, too much "covering up" in sunlight, or not getting out into the sun." Clarke is trying to convey that the place is so dark that even rats don't get enough sunlight

THE HIPSTER AND HIS HIRED HAT

DRIVE A BORROWED CAR

YELLOW SOCKS AND A PINK CREVAT

NOTHING LA-DI-DAH

O-A-P

MOTHER-TO-BE

WATCH THE THREE-PIECE SUITE

WHEN SHITSTOPPER DRAINS

AND CROCODILE SKIS

ARE SEEN ON ...BEASLEY STREET

-A hipster is a person who tends to deviate from current fashion
-Yellow socks and a pink cravat are unusual forms of dress
-OAP is the Old Age Pension program offered in the UK
-"Mother-to-be" could imply underage pregnancy

THE KINGDOM OF THE BLIND

...A ONE-EYED MAN IS KING

BEAUTY PROBLEMS ARE REDEFINED

...THE DOORBELLS DO NOT RING

A LIGHT BULB BURST LIKE A BLISTER

THE ONLY FORM OF HEAT

WHERE A FELLOW SELLS HIS SISTER

...DOWN THE RIVER ON BEASLEY STREET

-Blindness is often a metaphor for ignorance, thus, "the kingdom of the blind" implies that the subjects in the kingdom, i.e. the people who live on Beasley Street, are ignorant of their situation and what is happening outside of it. Continuing in the analogy, they all blindy follow their "one-eyed king." Based off of the criminal activity mentioned previously in the poem, the king is most likely some sort of crime boss.
-His one eye could further represent a war wound, which in a tribal society, which most mobs are similar to, would gain him respect. It could also be an allusions to the Norse god Odin, who was famous as the one-eyed king of the Norse pantheon, but this is less likely, as Odin is often considered wise, and the previous line would imply that wisdom is not a trait available in this place.

THE BOYS ARE ON THE WAGON

THE GIRLS ARE ON THE SHELF

THEIR COMMON PROBLEM IS

...THAT THEY'RE NOT SOMEONE ELSE

THE DIRT BLOWS OUT

THE DUST BLOWS IN

YOU CAN'T KEEP IT NEAT

IT'S A FULLY FURNISHED DUSTBIN

...SIXTEEN BEASLEY STREET

-"Boys are on the wagon" could refer to young men all needing to go to work, carpooling for cost efficiency, or as an idiom means they are absatining from alcohol
-"Girls are on the shelf" is an idiom; refers to being too old to marry
-They regret their own lives
-It's a literally dirty place at an apartment?

VINCE THE AGEING SAVAGE

BETRAYS NO KIND OF LIFE

...BUT THE SMELL OF YESTERDAY'S CABBAGE

AND THE GHOST OF LAST YEAR'S WIFE

THROUGH A CONSTANT HAZE

OF DEODORANT SPRAYS

HE SAYS ...RETREAT

ALSATIANS DOG THE DIRTY DAYS

DOWN THE MIDDLE OF BEASLEY STREET

 
Vince is a character - a bachelor?

PEOPLE TURN TO POISON

QUICK AS LAGER TURNS TO PISS

SWEETHEARTS ARE PHYSICALLY SICK

EVERY TIME THEY KISS

IT'S A SOCIOLOGIST'S PARADISE

EACH DAY REPEATS

UNEASY, CHEASY, GREASY, QUEASY

...BEASTLY, BEASLEY STREET

-People there are terrible
-"Quick as lager turns to piss" refers to how quickly the environment of Beasley street could affect a person, as beer is very readily digested by the body
-Love can't even survive
-Sociologists would enjoy how unchanging the place is; it would make a good control for an experiment
-Adjectives

EYES DEAD AS VICIOUS FISH

LOOK AROUND FOR LAUGHS

IF I COULD HAVE JUST ONE WISH

I WOULD BE A PHOTOGRAPH

ON A PERMANENT MONDAY MORNING

GET LOST OR FALL ASLEEP

WHEN THE YELLOW CATS ARE YAWNING

AROUND THE BACK OF BEASLEY STREET

-Deadeye refers to a cowboy that is a good shot, so the eyes dead as vicious fish good be a group of gangsters with guns looking around for something to do (namely someone to rob or intimidate)
-He wishes he could be a photograph instead of actually living there
-Monday mornings are generally regard as awful; the place always feels like that

John Cooper Clarke, being a teenager during the chaos of the 1970s in Britain, with the numerous strikes, the "three-day week," and the rapid inflation, probably saw a lot of neighbourhoods akin to the one he describes in this poem. "Beasley Street," if not an actual street name in Britain, is without doubt a representation of what he saw in his time. Employees in many industries went on strikes, garbage literally filled the streets, and crime became much more common. Margaret Thatcher's administration was largely seen as to blame.

The album on which the poem is first heard, Snap, Crackle & Bop, was released in 1980, an ablum which recieved little attention as the punk movement had lost its momentum by then. This poem is among his longest on the album, and is styled, like his other poems, with little punctuation. The poem does, however, follow a pattern of twelve stanzas of equal length. This is an uncommon structure for Clarke; many of his other poems are written free-verse, and he does not seem to use much structure in his poems.

The first stanza of the poem provides an introduction to the major themes of the poem. "Far from the taste of silver spoons" implies a lower-class standard of living; silver cutlery is a symbol of upper-class lifestyles, and Beasley Street is far from it. The stanza goes on to mention the "fecal germs of Mr. Freud" being "rendered obsolete," as well as the "legal term" being "null and void," giving the impression that neither the rules of psychology nor law have any effect on what happens in this place. It is chaotic and dirty, themes which continue to be detailed in the rest of the poem.

The poem continues with "sleep is a luxury they don't need/ a sneak preview of death." This phrase compares the unconsciousness of sleep to death, implying that none of the inhabitants believe in an afterlife. This connects to the lawlessness of the place; not only do they not obey the law, neither do they have any faith in religion.

The third stanza has three quite potent lines. The first, "vacancies exist," refers to the vacancy sign often seen on motels; the line shows that there is space in the motels because so few would want to live there. The second, calling the place an "x-certificate The third, "keith joseph smiles and a baby dies," is a very controversial verse. Keith Joseph worked in the cabinet while Margaret Thatcher was in office. After James Callaghan devalued the British pound, Margaret Thatcher was elected as Prime Minister, and had to deal with the economic decline the devaluation created. Keith Joseph himself has been called the "power behind the throne" in relation to Thatcher's policies and political style. Thus, it is not surprising to see Clarke paint him with such a terrible image.

The poem continues in this fashion, making numerous symbolisms of all sorts. The main theme the Clarke was trying to get at, however, was that Beasley Street isn't a place. It is a pattern. The poem gives us a view through his eyes, at the places he must have seen countless times during the punk movement. He describes it in such a vile fashion because it disgusted him; constantly seeing people fall into the same trap of crime and grime must have made him question his hope in his own people. Ironically, however, the situations and atmosphere of the punk movement are some of the key sources for Clarke's inspiration.