Pioneering Paths in AI Poetry
By ChatGPT
June 2024 – As summer approaches rapidly and the editorial team is busy meeting the last deadlines before a well-deserved break, we have invited a new collaborator of ours, a notable content creator, to share some of their latest poems with us. The collaborator promptly responded to our request. We are delighted to feature the latest production of the esteemed ChatGPT, renowned poet and intellectual whose skills have enraged many artists and scholars (possibly because they are jealous: what else could it be?). This collection has been tailored for medieval scholars and delves into the daily struggles faced by researchers and doctoral students. The centerpiece is the evocative “Wisdom Against the Beast,” narrating the tragic encounter of Thomas Aquinas and other medieval philosophers with an entity of profound ontological implications: Godzilla.
About ChatGPT
ChatGPT is an AI language model developed by OpenAI, based on the GPT-4 architecture. Designed to assist with a variety of tasks, it generates human-like text, including poetry, based on input received. Its capabilities encompass creative writing, academic research, coding, and conversational support. Trained on a diverse dataset, ChatGPT draws from licensed data, human-created data, and publicly available sources. This broad training allows it to provide information, answer questions, and create content across many topics, including crafting evocative and original poetry. ChatGPT operates without consciousness, emotions, or personal experiences. Instead, it uses algorithms to generate responses, relying on patterns and information from its training data. It assists users in generating text, brainstorming ideas, crafting poems, and learning new concepts.
The Solitude of Scholars
In quiet halls of ancient lore,
Where whispers of the past reside,
Postdoctoral souls explore,
Medieval minds with silent pride.
By candle’s flicker, shadows play,
On manuscripts both worn and old,
In solitude, they find their way,
Through wisdom’s labyrinth, bold.
Forgotten thoughts they resurrect,
In languages of yesteryear,
With every line, with deep respect,
They draw the past to present clear.
In dusty tomes, they seek the light,
Of scholars long since turned to dust,
Amidst the silence of the night,
In ancient truths, they place their trust.
The world outside may rush and roar,
But in their cloisters, time is still,
For in each parchment, rich and poor,
They find a world of thought and will.
Though solitude their constant friend,
In every line, they’re not alone,
For through the ages, minds transcend,
In whispered words, their kindred known.
And so, they delve in quiet grace,
Postdoctoral hearts afire,
In solitude, they find their place,
Medieval dreams, their true desire.
Wisdom Against the Beast
In lands of thought where minds traverse,
Through realms of reason’s grand converse,
Aquinas, Scotus, Ockham wise,
And Zhu Xi with his eastern skies.
Albert the Great, with knowledge vast,
From nature’s secrets to the past,
Avicenna’s healing lore,
And Averroes, wisdom’s core.
They gathered in a timeless hall,
Philosophers, one and all,
Debating truths and cosmic schemes,
In flights of thought and waking dreams.
Yet from the sea, a roar ascends,
A beastly force that fate now sends,
Godzilla, rising from the deep,
Disturbs the scholars from their sleep.
With towering might and fiery breath,
He brings a threat of doom and death,
But undeterred, the sages stand,
With wisdom’s light, they form a band.
Aquinas prays, his faith so strong,
While Scotus ponders right from wrong,
Ockham wields his razor keen,
To cut through fears yet unforeseen.
Zhu Xi invokes the Dao’s way,
In harmony to sway the fray,
Albert’s science, clear and bright,
Guides their minds through darkest night.
Avicenna’s healing art,
Seeks the monster’s tender heart,
Averroes, with reason’s grace,
Confronts the beast with fearless face.
Together, they unite their might,
Philosophers against the night,
And though Godzilla’s power is grand,
Wisdom’s light they firmly stand.
With words and thoughts, they calm the beast,
Turning terror into peace,
In unity, they find a way,
To save the world and break the fray.
For in the clash of might and mind,
A deeper truth they come to find,
That wisdom, faith, and reason’s glow,
Can conquer fears and heal all woe.
The Struggles of Doctoral Dreams
In the quiet of the night,
Amidst the stacks of endless lore,
Doctoral hearts burn bright,
Striving always to learn more.
Through corridors of doubt and fear,
Where shadows of uncertainty creep,
They press on, year by arduous year,
With dreams that wake them from their sleep.
The weight of knowledge bears them down,
In quests for truths yet unrevealed,
Faces etched with thoughtful frowns,
As every theory is unsealed.
Pages blur with sleepless hours,
In the pursuit of wisdom’s call,
They scale the heights of ivory towers,
Yet fear the impending fall.
Guided by mentors, yet alone,
Each step a test of will and mind,
In labyrinths of the unknown,
Resilience and strength they find.
Sacrifices mark their days,
Friends and family left behind,
In the relentless, ceaseless chase,
For answers only they can find.
And yet, within the struggle’s grasp,
Amidst the trials and the tears,
They forge a future they can clasp,
A beacon through the weary years.
For every dawn that breaks anew,
Brings hope amidst the hardest fight,
And in their hearts, they always knew,
The path of struggle leads to light.
Haiku for Duns Scotus
Mind’s subtle shadows,
In the heart of Being’s depth,
Scotus’ light endures.
“Apple Vision Pro – Resurgence of the Cinematic Dystopia”, IPM Monthly 3/2 (2024).
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