Author: Martin Knox
Date Published: 30-Jun-2020
The urge to write, whether in poetry or prose derives, at least in part from vanity, but I would also suggest more serious reasons for the endeavour: explicitly to raise awareness around social injustice, environmental destruction, and human suffering. Injustice and suffering derive, in the main, from avoidable catastrophes and resource misuse, which are either planned or are allowed to continue with impunity, by and large through political intrigue. There are, of course, many other reasons as to why writers engage with the craft. This book has been inspired by another contemporary Irish poet, Conor Farrell, who lives and works in Spain. It is also inspiring to read other poets such as Seamus Heaney, Paddy Kavanagh, Simon Armitage, Michael Hartnett and writers in prose and song, namely, Bertrand Russell, Noam Chomsky, George Orwell, John Prine and Bob Dylan, among others. It is widely accepted now, especially among those who reflect earnestly on the human condition, that serious societal inequalities are widespread and that there are significant imbalances casting shadows over our lives. For instance, there are the wealthy, who haven't enough: they are entitled. Sadly, they seem to be utterly indifferent to the plight of children dying from malnutrition, mindless conflicts and preventable diseases. It is scourges such as these that motivate me to write: social disparities ought not be permitted to exist in a civilised world. - Martin Knox