Pleasure: Poems

Pleasure skirts danger. The word bleeds from the tongue, bent to the ends of individual persuasion, and as such, great thinkers have planted their insignia on its promise and peril. For example, French philosopher Voltaire wrote that "illusion is the first of all pleasures." Early 19th century English author Jane Austen said, "one half of the world cannot understand the pleasures of the other." Perhaps the Stoic statesman Seneca provides the most useful perspective: "Enjoy present pleasures in such a way as not to injure future ones." From the innocent to the seductive, from the epicurean to the carnal, enjoy the latest poetry collection from Kelvin C. Bias.