The Shrine Whose Shape I Am By Sam Menashe

I found “The Shrine Whose Shape I Am” by Samuel Menashe difficult. When I first read the title, I thought of Japanese shrines. After reading the poem, I realized that the speaker was talking about Christian shrines. I only know about Christian churches, so I wasn’t sure if shrines and churches were the same. I found the first stanza challenging because I’m not sure what the “fringe of fire” is supposed to represent (2). I considered that the fire is temptation or pain from the devil since fire is associated with Hell. I’m also not sure why the speaker describes themselves as “breathed in flesh by shameless love” (5). Do they think of themselves as empty inside, thus being only flesh? I’m also curious about their specific use of shameless as a description
Alarcón. Compared to the other pieces of poetry, it was much shorter, yet still had the same amount of meaning. Within nine lines, the speaker implied that the X in his name signifies signing away all human rights. Even in the poem, the speaker directly states, “giving away all rights,” giving the X in his name a foreboding connotation (6-7). In contracts and deals, there's usually a line with an X where the signer needs to sign their name. It’s obvious that the speaker doesn’t regard himself well by his diction: poor, illiterate, and peasant. It only serves to paint a picture of an unfortunate person who has faced struggle and turmoil all their life. Since this poem was straightforward, there isn't’ a need to analyze as much as the longer poems. However, I do wonder who and where the “deceiving contract” came from (8-9). Are they talking about a literal contract or an imaginary contract? Except for the speaker's description about themselves and the fact that they have an x in their name, not a lot is known about them. Not knowing a lot adds a tone of mystery to the poem. The subject is the x in the name, but the theme is “my signature is the same as giving away my