Here’s the poem itself:
Freezing: Triolet for a PwP
Caught in an endless loop
I try to move forward but can’t.
Why this slumping stoop?
Caught in an endless loop
out of step from the group
Things always go askant.
Caught in an endless loop
I try to move forward but can’t.
This is a precise and poignant poem. Here is a detailed analysis covering its form, context, and literary mechanics.
1. Context: “PwP”
PwP is standard shorthand for Person with Parkinson’s. This immediately situates the poem in the specific, physical reality of Parkinson’s disease, rather than just metaphorical “feeling stuck.”
2. Form: The Triolet as a Symptom
The choice of the triolet is a masterstroke of enactment—the form performs the content.
· Structure: 8 lines, with Line 1 repeated at Line 4 and Line 7. Line 2 repeated at Line 8.
· The Loop: Parkinson’s “Freezing of Gait” is a phenomenon where the patient’s feet feel glued to the floor while the upper body continues moving forward (often leading to falls). The poem’s repeating refrain—”Caught in an endless loop”—is a precise literary echo of the brain’s motor circuit failing to fire.
· Frustration of the Form: A triolet is strict and claustrophobic. You are forced to return to the same line whether you want to or not. The poem cannot “move forward” from Line 1 any more than the speaker’s feet can.
3. Line-by-Line Poetic Analysis
“Caught in an endless loop”
The immediate, visceral identification of the problem. “Caught” implies a trap outside one’s will.
“I try to move forward but can’t.”
Brutally straightforward. There is no decorative language here because the reality is stark. The enjambment (or lack of a comma) rushes into the next line, mimicking a lurch.
“Why this slumping stoop?”
A direct reference to Camptocormia or postural instability, a classic symptom of PD where the spine curves forward involuntarily.
“Out of step from the group”
Parkinson’s often robs the patient of the internal metronome. They cannot match the rhythm of others walking beside them. There is a deep social isolation in this line—being physically present but temporally out of sync.
“Things always go so askant.”
Askant is a less common variant of “askance” (sidelong, awry, crooked).
Poetic effect: The word itself is slightly off, slightly “slumping” in its spelling. It suggests the world tilting sideways as balance fails.
4. The Inversion of the Final Line
A triolet usually repeats Line 2 exactly: “I try to move forward but can’t.”
However, notice the punctuation shift in the presentation here:
· Line 2: I try to move forward but can’t. (End stop. Full failure.)
· Line 8: I try to move forward but can’t.
Actually, looking closer at the provided text, the punctuation is identical. However, the context of Line 8 is different. By the time we reach Line 8, we have been through the loop once. The repetition is no longer a statement; it is a wearied sigh. The poem has proven that trying and failing is the only reality.
5. Conclusion
This is an excellent example of somatic poetry—poetry that translates bodily experience directly into formal structure. The triolet does not just describe freezing; it simulates the neurological loop of the basal ganglia. The poem cannot escape Line 1, just as the PwP cannot escape the freeze.