The "Apple" Poem

The Son of Man portrait; The painting consists of a man in an overcoat and a bowler hat standing in front of a short wall, beyond which is the sea and a cloudy sky. The man's face is largely obscured by a hovering green apple.

About the painting, Magritte, the artist, has said:"At least it hides the face partly. Well, so you have the apparent face, the apple, hiding the visible but hidden, the face of the person. It's something that happens constantly. Everything we see hides another thing, we always want to see what is hidden by what we see. There is an interest in that which is hidden and which the visible does not show us. This interest can take the form of a quite intense feeling, a sort of conflict, one might say, between the visible that is hidden and the visible that is present."

The Apple Poem


"Apples aren't rare but they are a treat
Tasty, some bitter, some tart and some sweet,

Sometimes an apple can come in a guise
A delivered package, an inspiring prize

Apples can be in the form of a kiss,
A rarity found through venom and hiss

An apple can come in the form of a hug
Like the arms of an angel from heaven above

Apples come in many sizes and shapes,
Their variety speaks to all manners of taste

Wonders and magic can sometimes transpire,

When apples are used as magical attire

But apples are most tasty when properly used
For apples you see are seldomly fused

Inside of an apple, though secret and sound
Is the shape of a star that is brilliant and round

It's seeds in the center should give you a clue
It's the seeds of the future, like seeds that are you

Brilliant and shiny,
Not just specs of dust

Resilient and strong
Meaning bendy, not tough

But if apples were truly like me and like you
Then maybe we'd realize, get natures clue

The clue is there is brilliance, seemingly rare
Inside there's a brilliance that can not be made bare

You see to see inside the apple you must cut in two
And to see inside me you must first see inside you."