by Raghav Arora and Samanwita Sen Spring Awakening is a bold take on teenage sexuality. It follows the experiences of various adolescents,’ sexuality coming to full bloom, with a major focus on Wendla Bergmann as she forays into the unfamiliar territory of lustful passion in her relationship with Melchior Gabor. The play strikes a fine […]
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A PDF of the print version of Issue #47 – Sacrifice – can be downloaded here.
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by Martin Yip On 1 October 2019, the People’s Republic of China celebrated its 70th anniversary. In Beijing, the largest ever military parade was staged. Fifteen thousand troops marched across Tiananmen Square with armaments that were all made in China. ‘Patriotism and pride swelled among the Chinese as they celebrated the country’s seven decades of […]
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by Leo Gillard Laila could see that he was on the edge of something; something she didn’t want to see come to pass. Actually, they could all see it. Kieran was standing on the edge he’d been standing on for years now. Yet it… it almost wasn’t him she worried for. Everyone knew that Kieran […]
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by Samanwita Sen Dear dreamer, It must have been a treacherous sail across the world. I can imagine it – how years before my formless thoughts could fathom the existence of time and a world beyond you and this beautiful thing called growing up, you must’ve arched your back, reaching for the specks of stardust […]
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by Grace Khuri 2019 marks the hundredth anniversary of the Treaty of Versailles (signed 28 June 1919), which officially ended the First World War. At this time of year, and not least during this twilight of the centenary commemorations, we reflect on the subject of sacrifice and its meanings. There are many types of sacrifice, […]
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by Monim Wains Those who are selfless, who give to others, in some way or another, are worthy of respect, or so we think. The epitome of such people is those who sacrifice their whole lives to protect something worthwhile. We admire and respect their courage, celebrate their spirit with great monuments and ceremonies. What […]
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by Pedram Bassirian
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A PDF of the print version of Issue #46 – Hope – can be downloaded here.
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by Oriel College Supporters Hope is a powerful thing, but it can sometimes be hard to come by, especially in a university where there is so much going on so much of the time. In the midst of it all, when you need a break and a chat, the college’s Peer Supporters are here to […]
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by Monim Wains You stood at the bottom of the waterfall, pelted by the deluge, punches of weight pounding down on your bones, thumping a tonne on your shoulders. You had been brought to the forest some time ago; not out of your own volition, but by those who decreed that you should exist. Like […]
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by David Asamoah The youngest of the last remaining three,Junior to Faith that moves the sun and starsAnd second ranked to Love that endures scarsSo that others may know its riches freeBut if not for Hope’s love which heart would seeBeyond the bleak heavens which Faith moved so?If not with Hope how much would small […]
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by Dania Kamal Aryf Hope is a ray of sunlight that slips through the windows of a fourteen-hour flight, Hope packaged in a luggage bag, not more than thirty kilograms, because they expect a lot from you but you can never be too much, yet you should never be not enough; Hope is the faintest flicker […]
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by Leo Gillard He’d never dared think about something like hope. Hope was for fools, for those reaching out in the dark, expecting nothing but still seeing everything, somehow. He didn’t have the luxury to entertain something so trivial, so baseless, so- Orion hoped for many things. He knew the hope was futile. He hated […]
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by Michael Angerer The world we live in certainly appears to be a dangerous place these days: a single glance at the news is enough to distract us from our petty worries about busy Oxford terms or a slightly less busy year abroad. Every headline promises another debacle, from Brexit to Syria to whatever President […]
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by ZX and Martin Yip ‘Nostalgia’ has two meanings. Originally, it meant ‘homesickness’. Today, it means ‘longing for the past’. For Hongkongers living in the UK, both meanings are apt. On Sunday 9th June, huge crowds filled the streets of Hong Kong to protest against a proposed law that would allow anyone in Hong Kong […]
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by Tom Saer ‘Can you give me a cautious “yes”?’floats up to me from the past, one of my first auditions. Time is a flat circle for me for five small portal minutes.Out of my pint glass body, staring at the stage, the wormhole made when I think about what things look like from the […]
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A PDF of the print version of Issue #45 – Nostalgia – can be downloaded here.
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by Leo Gillard Content warning: implied/referenced emotional abuse The sky was dark, and as Zach sat on the chair next to the radiator, he could watch snow falling. The street they lived on was always pretty poorly lit at night, but the light from the single streetlamp he could spot illuminated the flakes as they […]
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by Peter Gent Four years ago when we launched the print edition of The Poor Print, the editorial team, then led by Jacob Warn, had an idea: we would publish anything anyone submitted. But, we said, we would only do so if we could shape submissions with a strong editorial hand. We wanted concise, pithy, […]
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by Monim Wains A blank white lit the room, harsh surgical light on every sterile surface. It would have felt clean and empty were it not for the sombre that stained the air. Silence echoed through the room. All the colours were muted: pastel blue and that green that looked like plastic dyed in washing […]
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by Chloe Jacobs I wonder if my mother, younger, Hair bleached summer blonde And smelling, strong, of chlorine, Ever pictured this. This cold place,That borrowed home, Her careful calculus of living. They say you give a part Of yourself, to your child.Inventory: eyes, nose, lips, fear,Hands like mine hand them to me.Perhaps this is why […]
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by David K. Asamoah Oh starry night, I look at you and swoonEnchanted by your ever constant gaze Your numberless glowing orbs watch o’er the ruin Of sleeping souls held in a somnolent haze Not all are blessed to lose into that scent Some run past dawn and miss that gorgeous highBut while the odour […]
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by Michael Angerer The end of the academic year is upon us, vacation-time is about to break out, and so it is time to look back fondly upon our term as Executive Editors of The Poor Print: it is time for nostalgia. You might think that the word ‘nostalgia’ has ancient roots; you would be wrong. […]
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Text and Photograph by Megan Bowler It seemed a waste to let the petals fall and wither,to grace and mingle with the hoovered dust.There was a selfishness in keeping a flower,cut and vased and terminal. Doomed, they bloomed a frail week,irredeemable, and yet I could not part with the remainder. Crushed and crispened under weighty […]
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by Beary McBearface Beary McBearface, treasured Oriel mascot and JCR staple, is here to help you with your troubles. In this column, Beary will attempt to find solutions to your little college worries; trust him, he’s seen it all. All you need to do is email thepoorprint@oriel.ox.ac.ukwith the subject line ‘Dear Beary’. Of course, if you’d […]
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by Joe Gardiner
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by David K. Asamoah Those eyes tell not a story rich and grand Like pompous bards of epic poetry old Nor do they orate odes to bright morns gold Those dark depths whisper of a starry land And on the fateful odyssey unplanned My soul took to the dreamy waters wellHoping to leave with chronicles […]
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by Tom Saer You have bad taste in encouragement She tells me how to eat The swan dipping in the water narwhal face She tells me what to eat The feathers on the ground She tells me not to eat The chaotic glee of the universe The tone that rhymes with all your curvature
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by Kate Whittington My birth is a juddery one. I am seized by quick, tight spasms and then torn jaggedly from white unborn skin. I am imprinted quickly in strong black lines. There is little after-flow of blood. Into her hands, her fingers, warm jittering fingers and wrists damp with scent and sweat, little nicks […]
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A PDF of the print version of Issue #44 – Light – can be downloaded here.
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by James Hobson
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by Leo Gillard The sunlight was streaming through the trees, dappling the ground with ever-shifting patterns. As they walked, Sasha in front and Zach next to him just behind her, leaves steadily fell from the trees with every gust of wind. Further off in the distance, Arthur could hear Willow somewhere in the stream. Well, […]
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by Monim Wains Skin pulled tight with springs and coils tense and stiff. Cold attic on a dry winter day, lit only by moon-blue beams that cut a chill in your chest. Each breath ebbing out in gasps. Anguish for a single sunlit ribbon to swim through it all, awashing you in warmth. To lay […]
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by Fanxi Liu
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by The Lone Pencil The futuristic dragon looks up at the butterfly, which flies down in the midst of a ray of light. We do not know what the dragon thinks. Will he eat the butterfly? Or is he admiring the tiny creature and the perfect moment? Dragons do not spend all their time hunting, treasuring or fighting […]
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by Samanwita Sen When walking away after watching a performance of My Mother Runs in Zig-Zags, perhaps the most lasting impression one is left with is how seamlessly and intricately the play has been put together. It’s no secret that, when watching the play, every note that is struck, every movement that is executed, and every […]
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by Emma McIntyre Fie! Away, mournful silence!It is you again, who finds comfort in the uniform greys;The faded names. The eroded stone; you, alone.Sunrise, sunset. Son, brother, friend. You continue; crushing souls beneath your feetUntil you pause at mine, and studyThe inscription above my headThrough the sky’s deluge and through my marrow.Letters carved into immortal […]
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by Beary McBearface Beary McBearface, treasured Oriel mascot and JCR staple, is here to help you with your troubles. In this column, Beary will attempt to find solutions to your little college worries; trust him, he’s seen it all. All you need to do is email thepoorprint@oriel.ox.ac.uk with the subject line ‘Dear Beary’, and if […]
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by Anonymous The granting of privileges to drinking societies is incompatible with a College ethos of inclusivity and equality. A contradiction lies at the very heart of the justification for College offering privileges to drinking societies. Two conceptions of these clubs are offered; neither of these are adequate and it is only through the unjustified […]
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