He Had Such Quiet Eyes by Bibsy Soenharjo
He had such quiet eyes
She did not realise
They were two pools of lies
Layered with thinnest ice
To her, those quiet eyes
Were breathing desolate sighs
Imploring her to be nice
And to render him paradise
If only she’d been wise
And had listened to the advice
Never to compromise
With pleasure-seeking guys
She’d be free from ‘the hows and whys’
Now here’s a bit of advice
Be sure that nice really nice
Then you’ll never be losing at dice
Though you lose your heart once or twice
SYNOPSIS
This poem is about a girl who falls in love with a pleasure-seeking man. She is fascinated with his eyes but she never realises that those eyes are two pools of lies or full of lies. She was charmed by the two eyes which looked so desolate , so lonely, and so sad, asking her to be "nice" or good to him. For him, being nice means asking her to render him "paradise". The word "render" is usually used with a service, to provide him with a service, ... what kind of service can a young girl give to a man?
The man has a pair of quiet eyes which she does not realise that they are not that "quiet". As she is ‘charmed’ by the eyes, she does not listen to the advice given by her parents, her friends who are concerned with her behaviour.
If only
(1) she had been wise , or able to make a good choice and decision ;
(2) and had listened to advices,
(3) and never compromise her principles, or values (that has been taught to her),
surely she wouldn't be in such difficult situation - in which she would be asking herself questions like why did she do it, why didn't she listen to people's advice, how did that happen? etc etc.
She should know when she says somebody is nice, make sure he is " nice" or really a good man, not a dishonest person, who isn't that nice or good.
By thinking and not compromising your principles and values, you'll never lose at dice - or the game of chance... you will survive because you are not affected physically,.. even though you may lose your heart several times, but it is a game of chance... You have to get to know man, make sure that if that person is good, he IS good! You might break your heart once or twice before really finding someone you like and also honest.
Hence, a piece of advice here.... do not get physically involved with a man..... Be sure that nice really means nice"!!!! Make sure that he is really nice or good, and not a deceitful person who is dishonest. Please listen to the experience and advice of other people because it would be too costly to experience it first and regret it later...
Here's the literal meaning of the poem ( )
Stanza 1
The woman is taken up with his ‘quiet eyes’. The eyes mesmerise and beg her to ‘be nice’ to him and make him extremely happy, that is ‘render him paradise’. The poet uses a very long imagery of the eyes ‘breathing desolate sighs’ to enhance the effect of the eyes on the girl. The woman, being enamoured with those eyes, does not notice he is deceiving her. It would not be difficult to see through the man if the woman had her feet on the ground because the eyes have only the ‘thinnest ice’, easy to break through to learn the man’s true nature.
The woman is taken up with his ‘quiet eyes’. The eyes mesmerise and beg her to ‘be nice’ to him and make him extremely happy, that is ‘render him paradise’. The poet uses a very long imagery of the eyes ‘breathing desolate sighs’ to enhance the effect of the eyes on the girl. The woman, being enamoured with those eyes, does not notice he is deceiving her. It would not be difficult to see through the man if the woman had her feet on the ground because the eyes have only the ‘thinnest ice’, easy to break through to learn the man’s true nature.
Stanza 2
Something has happened to the woman and she has learnt the truth about the man. The poet suggests that she has learnt the hard way that is she learns her lesson through bad experience. She has made a mistake of trusting the man because she has refused to listen to the advice not ‘to compromise’, that is, lower her standards or expectations in order to please a man who seduces women.
Something has happened to the woman and she has learnt the truth about the man. The poet suggests that she has learnt the hard way that is she learns her lesson through bad experience. She has made a mistake of trusting the man because she has refused to listen to the advice not ‘to compromise’, that is, lower her standards or expectations in order to please a man who seduces women.
Stanza 3
The poet extends her friendly advice to women to understand what is meant by ‘nice’ what it means when men are ‘nice’ to you. When he is ‘nice’, friendly and pleasant to you, make sure that he is sincere and trustworthy and not because he has ulterior motive, that is he wants something from you in return. The poet further comments that love may be a gamble as suggested in ‘dice’, you take your chances with someone, you may find true love or you may not. The important issue here is that ultimately you have not lost anything because you have not compromised, you are not deceived.
The poet extends her friendly advice to women to understand what is meant by ‘nice’ what it means when men are ‘nice’ to you. When he is ‘nice’, friendly and pleasant to you, make sure that he is sincere and trustworthy and not because he has ulterior motive, that is he wants something from you in return. The poet further comments that love may be a gamble as suggested in ‘dice’, you take your chances with someone, you may find true love or you may not. The important issue here is that ultimately you have not lost anything because you have not compromised, you are not deceived.
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