He used to be famous

Pisa
World War II
a plaza with makeshift cages
rows and rows of cages
GIs walk by
dressed sharply in uniform
some with Italian Women
they pass a cage
inside an Old Man
the GI has been holding a cat
he holds it into the cage
the Old Man shambles over
takes the cat
pets it lovingly
then he suddenly
bites into its neck
transforms into a ravening beast
blood and fur everywhere
the woman is horrified
is crying out
the Old Man retreats
to the corner of his cage
back to the couple
tearing into the cat's body
the woman is in tears
the GI is smiling
why? she asks him
he tells her
you'll find out tomorrow
the next day
they are again strolling
past the cages
they stop at the cage
of the Old Man
the woman is anxious
doesn't want to look
the GI urges her to
inside all the parts of the cat
bones organs muscle fur
have been arranged on the floor
in a pattern of ineffable beauty
against her will
because it it still horrible
the woman is enraptured
by the destruction
reconstruction
of the cat
it's so beautiful
the Old Man
pays them no mind
hunches over in the corner
muttering to himself
in a way
she says
it almost redeems
the horrible death of the animal
I know
says the GI
we've been doing it for months
it's really something
why's he a prisoner
ask the woman
he was a poet
says the GI
he's been accused of treason
he used to be famous
name's Ezra Pound