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The "Kelsunn-on-the-Air" Social Work PodcastAuthor: Silas , Your "E-Journalism Social Work Advocate"
This program Promotes, Highlights, and Uplifts the Social Work Profession. The podcast aims to educate the general public to the undeniably vital contributions Professional Social Workers make in every aspect of our society every day. Language: en Genres: Science, Social Sciences Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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2025 S Kelly Poem Recital "The Cold Within" by James Patrick Kinney
Friday, 26 December, 2025
Analysis of "The Cold Within" By James Patrick Kinney I provide a monologue I recorded live, where I introduced the poem and connect it to today's current social and humanitarian state. Following that I do an oral interpretation of the poem with an original music track called "The Chill" playing in the background.*************************************************************************(*** The following full analysis of "The Cold Within" By James Patrick Kinney is provided by "AI").*************************************************************************"The Cold Within" by James Patrick Kinney is a mid-1960s narrative poem that serves as a powerful allegory for the destructive nature of human prejudice. It depicts six individuals trapped in "bleak and bitter cold," each holding a stick of wood that could sustain a dying fire and save their lives. However, they all freeze to death because their internal biases—racism, classism, religious intolerance, and greed—prevent them from sharing their resources. The Characters and Their Prejudices - Each of the six "humans" (a word Kinney uses to emphasize their universal humanity) represents a specific societal divide: The Racist (White): Refuses to share their wood because they see a Black man in the group.The Bigot (Religious): Withholds their wood because someone else is not of their "church."The Poor Man: Refuses to help the "idle rich," viewing them as unworthy of his meager resource.The Rich Man: Obsesses over protecting his wealth from the "lazy shiftless poor" and keeps his stick.The Black Man: Seeks revenge for past injustices by withholding his wood to "spite the white."The Opportunist: Only gives to those who give to him, treating survival as a cynical "game." Core Themes -Selfishness vs. Survival: The poem illustrates that holding onto personal resources out of spite or greed leads to collective ruin.The "Cold Within": This central metaphor refers to the lack of warmth, empathy, and compassion in the human heart. The poem concludes that the characters did not die from the external cold, but from the spiritual coldness of their own hearts.Human Sin: Kinney explicitly labels their refusal to share as "proof of human sin," drawing on Christian parables of charity and self-sacrifice. Symbolism:The Dying Fire: Represents the "common good" or the collective spirit of humanity.The Sticks of Wood: Represent the individual's abilities, resources, or potential for kindness.Irony: The ultimate irony is that by trying to withhold resources from others they disliked, the characters guaranteed their own death.
