Quote:
Originally Posted by Roger Slater
Too easy for what? I'm not giving away my daughter's hand in marriage to the one suitor who can answer the riddle. The question for me is whether it's a good poem in the voice of darkness, not whether you know it's darkness speaking.
J. Patrick Lewis has a riddle where the answer is "a peacock." The last line of the riddle is "I am your biggest fan." You can only see the humor if you know the answer. So knowing the answer doesn't ruin the poem, it makes the poem. The riddle part is just an enjoyable add-on.
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You sound angry, Bob, but I hope that's a mirage. No one said knowing the answer ruins the poem, of course. And while that may (partially? You didn't quote the entire riddle) be true in Lewis' riddle, it's certainly not always true. For me, the challenge of a good riddle poem is much like that of any riddle: to sort out the challenge in the riddle and wrack your brain (trial and error!) trying to figure it out. I've always thought a good riddle is
supposed to be challenging.
There may be irony in the riddle poem before the answer is known, and I like those a lot. A difficult riddle gives you something to play with, spend some time on, like any puzzle. Children's riddles are another category, and the age of the child will be relevant.
To respond to something you said earlier, the fun of the riddle is not gone when the answer is known, in any case. There may be various layers of irony, and one still has to see whether the answer is really all there in the riddle, or whether other possible responses also follow the logic. Which, imo, isn't as neat as when there's only one possible answer.
It's an educational exercise, and the more irony the better. Whether the answer makes the riddle or not--well yes, but equally so is the challenge of the answer. It's a game. Games are played to win as well as to pass the time, have a learning experience and a laugh, match wits, and so on.
In any case, putting "Obscure" in the title pretty much gives it away.
May we ask some questions?
Jan, forgive my ignorance, but I don't see what "RR" has to do with your second stanza.