À satiété
Ne plus y voir de fin
Ne plus voir ceux qui ont faim
Il y a cette femme et
Cet enfant affamé
Une vie ignorée
Alors que d’autres se goinfrent
Bien étrange constat
Défaut de conscience
En science l’homme s’engage
Omniscient il échoue
Son frère l’appelle
La pelle creusera sa tombe
MOMENTOM EDITION
This poem by Alain, both sober and poignant, denounces indifference and social imbalances through powerful imagery and a concise structure. The title, “À satiété”, immediately evokes the idea of excess, of fullness to the point of disgust, and establishes a tragic contrast with hunger, omnipresent in the text.
The first two lines set up a striking opposition between the illusion of infinity and the reality of vital need. This juxtaposition highlights collective blindness to misery. The mention of “this woman” and “this starving child” gives a human face to this suffering, creating a sense of proximity that contrasts with the anonymity of “others gorging themselves.” This discrepancy underscores glaring inequalities and the selfishness of those who live in abundance.
The “strange observation” introduces a reflective pause, inviting the reader to contemplate the absurdity of a humanity capable of producing both abundance and famine simultaneously. “Lack of conscience” suggests a failure of empathy or collective responsibility, while “Man invests in science” and “Omniscient, he fails” offer an implicit critique of scientific progress, which remains incapable of addressing fundamental ethical and social issues.
The final passage gives the poem a tragic gravity. The call of the “brother,” a figure of human solidarity, remains futile against the shovel, a symbol of death and the divide between people. The brutal, definitive conclusion emphasizes tragic irony: humanity, seemingly all-powerful, ultimately buries itself in inaction and selfishness.
Through its brevity and intensity, Alain’s poem provokes a universal reflection on human responsibility in the face of inequality and the shared fate of humanity