Page 422

By Jack Joseph Smith

Shuned I had a good knife And thought about it I had even a better gun and ran I had a friend and I left I had a slutt and I came back Don't worry yourself It will all work out The wonder of all of it Can you imagine seeing What no one else ever has I am black American poverty No I am not

Original Scan

AI Interpretation

GPT

This page moves through weapons, flight, friendship, crude attachment, and class identity in a voice that feels cornered but still defiant.

The speaker lists dangerous options and reversals without settling into a single confession. Its late insistence on not being 'black American poverty' sounds like a refusal to let suffering become somebody else's label.

Claude

''''Shuned' -- good knife, better gun, ran. Friend left. A slut, came back. Confession-as-inventory. 'I am black American poverty / No I am not.''''