Kooser manages in his poem Tattoo to use a tattoo to illustrate the character of an old man at a yard sale. The description of the tattoo, as a vibrant piece of work, once upon a time, and a testament to the man's youth is interesting of itself. What sort of man would get a tattoo that I'm sure we've all seen on public display before. The lines "where vanity once punched him hard and the ache lingered on" capture the feeling of nostalgia perfectly - that longing for the past 'better' times. If the poem had to be condensed, and only three lines could be used, the lines which best describe the man are the first, those two I've mentioned, and then the one about the sleeves of the black t-shirt.
Kooser manages, with barely a word about what the man specifically looks like save one or two details, make us believe that we know him by the end of the brief poem. We even feel sorry for his loss of youth, and his longing for it, toward the end.
Yes! What do we know about the character's motivations?
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