A dog after love
A cocky poem about love
by Yehuda Amichai
“After you left me
I had a bloodhound sniff at
my chest and my belly. Let it fill its nostrils
and set out to find you.
I hope it will find you and rip
your lover’s balls to shreds and bite off his cock–
or at least
bring me one of your stockings between its teeth”
After she left , he would have a bloodhound sniff his chest and belly. That is where her smell lingers. The sniffer dog will find her from the smell. Surely her new lover,who may be with her, carries her smell too . The bloodhound will then rip his balls and bite off his cock. Because that is where her smell resides. Sweet revenge.
In case the dog fails to do that, he will at least bring one of her stockings. It is still sweet revenge . With only one stocking how will she roam around with her new lover?
In case the dog bites off his cock, she may have to come back to her old lover! How desirable !
What do you think is the tone of the poem? It is certainly not a love poem . Nobody tells a lover who abandons him for another that he is setting a sniffer dog after love. Where is the tongue and is it in the big cheek? Of course the dog goes after love, just like a police dog does. For the smell he has only to sniff at the master’s chest and belly.
But the master only hopes the dog will find her , based upon a comparison of her scent as captured from his chest and belly. He only hopes that the smell still persists after she left . Whatever is left may not be sufficient for the dog to find her. The dog may not have enough smell left to fill its nostrils. But does the master really care? If the dog finds her and her lover it may rip the lover’s balls or bite off his cock.
If not, the dog will return with a stocking of the beloved.What does this prove? Probably that the lover does not exist or that the lover does not smell of the beloved , where such smell is supposed to linger after her infidelity with the second lover.
What I find interesting is the gentle playfulness about the theme of love. Does love really matter? If your love leaves you all you do is set a dog after it. Do not go searching for her. Do not go mushy about love on lonely moon lit nights.The smell of love hardly persists for the dog to go after. But jealousy is the trapping of love. If there is a lover his balls have to be ripped, his cock wrenched off. But that is all part of the game and no hard feelings. You really mean hard -on feelings.
What does one want from love, now that the beloved has left for another? A souvenir from dead love, like one stocking from her feet. If the dog finds no lover whose balls have to be ripped or cock wrenched off, let him bring one stocking from her between his teeth. At least. What will one do with one stocking? Is it to just moon over it like a medieval lover? For all we know it may be to put her feet out of stocking for a while. A sweet revenge.
The poet-photographer 