The Planners
They plan. They build. All spaces are gridded,
Filled with permutations of possibilities.
The buildings are in alignment with the roads
Which meet at desired points
Linked by bridges all hang
In the grace of mathematics.
They build and will not stop.
Even the sea draws back
and the skies surrender.
They erase the flaws,
the blemishes of the past, knock off
useless blocks with dental dexterity.
All gaps are plugged
with gleaming gold.
The country wears perfect rows
of shining teeth.
Anesthesia, amnesia, hypnosis.
They have the means.
They have it all so it will not hurt,
so history is new again.
The piling will not stop.
The drilling goes right through
the fossils of last century.
But my heart would not bleed
poetry. Not a single drop
to stain the blueprint
of our past’s tomorrow.
Filled with permutations of possibilities.
The buildings are in alignment with the roads
Which meet at desired points
Linked by bridges all hang
In the grace of mathematics.
They build and will not stop.
Even the sea draws back
and the skies surrender.
They erase the flaws,
the blemishes of the past, knock off
useless blocks with dental dexterity.
All gaps are plugged
with gleaming gold.
The country wears perfect rows
of shining teeth.
Anesthesia, amnesia, hypnosis.
They have the means.
They have it all so it will not hurt,
so history is new again.
The piling will not stop.
The drilling goes right through
the fossils of last century.
But my heart would not bleed
poetry. Not a single drop
to stain the blueprint
of our past’s tomorrow.
Summary
Boey Kim Cheng presents a skeptical view towards progress in “The Planners”. Modernization is portrayed as destructive, and this is clearly shown through the use of extended metaphor, diction, and paradox.
Boey Kim Cheng presents a skeptical view towards progress in “The Planners”. Modernization is portrayed as destructive, and this is clearly shown through the use of extended metaphor, diction, and paradox.
First stanza
In the first stanza, Cheng makes us feel as if progress is destructive by dehumanizing the planners and personifying nature.
The fact that the pronoun “they” is used instead of directly naming the planners makes them seem ominous and mysterious. The planners are dehumanized. The mathematical/organization semantic field at the beginning of the poem shows that there isn’t much that is surprising or interesting in the city. (e.g. “permutations”, “in the grace of mathematics”) The sea and sky are personified - they are drawing back and surrendering. Shows that the planners have driven nature out of the city.
In the first stanza, Cheng makes us feel as if progress is destructive by dehumanizing the planners and personifying nature.
The fact that the pronoun “they” is used instead of directly naming the planners makes them seem ominous and mysterious. The planners are dehumanized. The mathematical/organization semantic field at the beginning of the poem shows that there isn’t much that is surprising or interesting in the city. (e.g. “permutations”, “in the grace of mathematics”) The sea and sky are personified - they are drawing back and surrendering. Shows that the planners have driven nature out of the city.
Second stanza
In the second stanza, Cheng shows that modernization is destructive through the use of extended metaphor and diction.
Extended metaphor is introduced which lasts throughout the entire stanza. The extended metaphor equates the planners to dentists. The idea of going to the dentist is one that many people find unpleasant. This is part of the reason why the poet uses that metaphor here.
“Dental dexterity” is usually very precise, which shows that everything in the city is planned and can be manipulated very precisely. The fact that “all gaps are plugged with gleaming gold” extends the metaphor of dentistry, since the gaps are like holes in teeth, and the “gleaming gold” is a filling. Shows that the older and more interesting parts of the city are being knocked down and replaced with something that is uniform and banal due to the alliteration.
The gold may also represent money, so this shows that everything is being transformed into something luxurious.
The “perfect rows of shining teeth” represent new, modern buildings. These buildings have replaced the older and more historic buildings.
Repetition of words with connotations of forgetfulness shows that the planners are trying to disassociate people with the past: “anesthesia” makes you forget physical pain, “amnesia” makes you forget memories, and “hypnosis” can create new memories.
“The piling” refers to the planners piling on new buildings in replacement of the old ones.
The drilling of “fossils of the last century” metaphorically represents the destruction of the past.
In the second stanza, Cheng shows that modernization is destructive through the use of extended metaphor and diction.
Extended metaphor is introduced which lasts throughout the entire stanza. The extended metaphor equates the planners to dentists. The idea of going to the dentist is one that many people find unpleasant. This is part of the reason why the poet uses that metaphor here.
“Dental dexterity” is usually very precise, which shows that everything in the city is planned and can be manipulated very precisely. The fact that “all gaps are plugged with gleaming gold” extends the metaphor of dentistry, since the gaps are like holes in teeth, and the “gleaming gold” is a filling. Shows that the older and more interesting parts of the city are being knocked down and replaced with something that is uniform and banal due to the alliteration.
The gold may also represent money, so this shows that everything is being transformed into something luxurious.
The “perfect rows of shining teeth” represent new, modern buildings. These buildings have replaced the older and more historic buildings.
Repetition of words with connotations of forgetfulness shows that the planners are trying to disassociate people with the past: “anesthesia” makes you forget physical pain, “amnesia” makes you forget memories, and “hypnosis” can create new memories.
“The piling” refers to the planners piling on new buildings in replacement of the old ones.
The drilling of “fossils of the last century” metaphorically represents the destruction of the past.
Third stanza
In the final stanza, the speaker says that he actually wants to preserve the blueprints that the planners are using to plan the city. Shows that he may actually support the modernization that they are carrying out. Seems like he has been brainwashed by the planners into being on their side.
It doesn’t seem like the speaker would go for two stanzas expressing the destruction of the city and then change his mind in four quick lines. He has become numb to the destruction and now seems like it is pointless to object. It's almost like he’s being ironic/sarcastic when he says he’s not “[going to bother to] bleed poetry” to “stain the blueprint of [his] past’s tomorrow”, since he is doing exactly that in this poem.
In the final stanza, the speaker says that he actually wants to preserve the blueprints that the planners are using to plan the city. Shows that he may actually support the modernization that they are carrying out. Seems like he has been brainwashed by the planners into being on their side.
It doesn’t seem like the speaker would go for two stanzas expressing the destruction of the city and then change his mind in four quick lines. He has become numb to the destruction and now seems like it is pointless to object. It's almost like he’s being ironic/sarcastic when he says he’s not “[going to bother to] bleed poetry” to “stain the blueprint of [his] past’s tomorrow”, since he is doing exactly that in this poem.