A Preemptive Eulogy of a Riddle

Question

I haven’t been around for long
But my time left is limited
O damning relentless pursuit-

Soon, I will be overtaken
No longer will I sing to high heavens
Left only to a diehard few.

Please, before I am defeated
Light me up. Beat me senseless.
I will ask for more.

Give me the the twists. The spins.
Give me anything but silence.
I shan’t go quietly into the night …

I will roar!
Pounding a din most pleasant
With fires raging inside.

Already, the shift has begun
Augmenting me with the most current
Soon to be displaced by the very same.

And while the future whines past
And I am left to dust
Raucous me will be naught but echoes.

I survive by the memories
Of those that swore by my mettle.
Of those that lived my own relentless pursuits.

What am I?

Answer 1

Could it be a

gasoline-powered car?

I haven’t been around for long But my time left is limited O damning relentless pursuit-

Gas-powered cars have only been around for a little over a hundred years. People are searching for alternative fuel sources like electric vehicles.

Soon, I will be overtaken No longer will I sing to high heavens Left only to a diehard few.

Car manufacturers have begun making electric only vehicles that are designed to replace cars with internal combustion engines (ICE). ICEs are notably louder than electric engines.

Please, before I am defeated Light me up. Beat me senseless. I will ask for more.

ICEs use sparks to ignite gasoline and which cause the engine to turn through a series of controlled explosions

Give me the the twists. The spins. Give me anything but silence. I shan’t go quietly into the night …

Describes the motion and noise of a gas-powered car

I will roar! Pounding a din most pleasant With fires raging inside.

More description of the noise and the fact that it is powered by burning gas

Already, the shift has begun Augmenting me with the most current Soon to be displaced by the very same.

Electric vehicles are starting to become a viable option. Hybrid cars are ICEs augmented with electric engines.

And while the future whines past And I am left to dust Raucous me will be naught but echoes.

I survive by the memories Of those that swore by my mettle. Of those that lived my own relentless pursuits.

I think these two stanzas are referring to the fact that after the predicted demise of the ICE, people will still celebrate and parade about the old muscle cars in the same way that classic vehicles are admired today.

Answer 2

It doesn't seem to fit everything, but my guess so far is

A steam train

I haven’t been around for long

But my time left is limited

O damning relentless pursuit-

In the scale of human history, the steam age was relatively brief

Soon, I will be overtaken

No longer will I sing to high heavens

Left only to a diehard few.

'Overtaken' both figuratively and literally, because modern trains are faster. The whistle of a steam train is it's 'singing'. The diehard few are the heritage and historic lines that are kept.

Please, before I am defeated

Light me up. Beat me senseless.

I will ask for more.

'Light me up' = light the coal furnace. 'I will ask for more' = the consuming of coal. One bit where I can't find a suitable interpretation is 'Beat me senseless', unless this is stoking the engine?

Give me the the twists. The spins.

Give me anything but silence.

I shan’t go quietly into the night …

'Twists' and 'Spins' are again parts I can't quite match up. Maybe referring to the mechanical nature of the steam engine. 'Anything but silence' - Steam trains are never quiet.

I will roar!

Pounding a din most pleasant

With fires raging inside.

Again, steam trains are noisy. 'Fires raging inside' = the coal furnace.

Already, the shift has begun

Augmenting me with the most current

Soon to be displaced by the very same.

Most trains are electrical now ('current' could be a double meaning here?). Technological advances.

And while the future whines past

And I am left to dust

Raucous me will be naught but echoes.

'whines past' = the high-pitched noise of a modern train passing at speed.

I survive by the memories

Of those that swore by my mettle.

Of those that lived my own relentless pursuits.

Steam was hailed as the greatest revolution in transport back in the early 20th century and is closely associated with a time of rapid progress and innovation. 'the memories of those...' is perhaps talking about the fame of entrepreneurs like Brunel, etc. who built the railways (i.e. other people's memories of them, rather than their own memories).

Answer 3

Or perhaps, you are

Bop-it!

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I haven’t been around for long
But my time left is limited
O damning relentless pursuit-

Soon, I will be overtaken
No longer will I sing to high heavens
Left only to a diehard few.

Bop-it! game isn't actually that old, but is becoming outdated in the relentless pursuit of yet greater games. Relentless pursuit is also a clue to the nature of the game, Bop-it!, which is a challenging test of relentlessly pursuing the game's instructions. Singing to the high heavens is also something done by this game, particularly when losing in the form of the electronic wailing of game-sounds and the narrator's howl. As this game becomes outdated, it is only left to a diehard few fans.

Please, before I am defeated
Light me up. Beat me senseless.
I will ask for more.

Give me the the twists. The spins.
Give me anything but silence.
I shan’t go quietly into the night …

Light it up, beat it (bop-it!), twist it, spin it, ANYTHING BUT SILENCE - Bop-It! just wants to be played y'all, and these activities are all distinctly instructions given in-game.

I will roar!
Pounding a din most pleasant
With fires raging inside.

Already, the shift has begun
Augmenting me with the most current
Soon to be displaced by the very same.

Fire inside and current refer to electricity and the circuitry powering the game. Arcade games like this are being replaced by far more advanced gaming technology, hand-in-hand with more advanced electronic circuitry. The pounding din is the background music.

And while the future whines past
And I am left to dust
Raucous me will be naught but echoes.

I survive by the memories
Of those that swore by my mettle.
Of those that lived my own relentless pursuits.

Similar interpretation as for the first two verses.

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As for why I specifically thought...

Bop-it...at first I thought of Pac-man and answered accordingly, but interpreting the 3rd and 4th verse made me think of Bop-it!

Answer 4

You are

a classic arcade game, Pac-man.

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I haven’t been around for long
But my time left is limited
O damning relentless pursuit-

Soon, I will be overtaken
No longer will I sing to high heavens
Left only to a diehard few.

Arcade games like pac-man aren't actually that old, but they are becoming outdated in the relentless pursuit of yet greater games. Relentless pursuit is also a clue to the nature of the arcade game, Pac-man, which is full of such activities. Singing to the high heavens is also something I think done in Pac-man, in the form of the electronic wailing of game-sounds. As this game becomes outdated, it is only left to a diehard few fans.

Please, before I am defeated
Light me up. Beat me senseless.
I will ask for more.

Give me the the twists. The spins.
Give me anything but silence.
I shan’t go quietly into the night …

Pac-man just wants to be played, y'all.

I will roar!
Pounding a din most pleasant
With fires raging inside.

Already, the shift has begun
Augmenting me with the most current
Soon to be displaced by the very same.

Fire inside and current refer to electricity and the circuitry powering the game. Arcade games like this are being replaced by far more advanced gaming technology, hand-in-hand with more advanced electronic circuitry. The pounding din is the background music.

And while the future whines past
And I am left to dust
Raucous me will be naught but echoes.

I survive by the memories
Of those that swore by my mettle.
Of those that lived my own relentless pursuits.

Similar interpretation as for the first two verses.

---

As for why I specifically thought...

Pac-man rather than another arcade game, I think it was intuition verified by the references to sounds (the background electronic wobble sound, and the losing tone, came to mind as I read this), references to relentless pursuits (OH - THE INTENSITY OF THOSE PURSUITS), and twists and spins moving Pac-man ... though that last point gives me another answer idea..!

Answer 5

This covers most of it, but is probably not correct.

An incandescent light bulb

I haven’t been around for long
But my time left is limited
O damning relentless pursuit-

Electric lighting is a relatively recent invention in the history of humanity

Soon, I will be overtaken
No longer will I sing to high heavens
Left only to a diehard few.

Incandescent bulbs are being replaced by more efficient alternatives, fluorescent, LED, etc. By "singing to the high heavens", perhaps this implies the light they give off that can be seen in the night sky. Even when incandescents have been completely phased out of production, there will undoubtedly be a few diehards who insist on using them.

Please, before I am defeated
Light me up. Beat me senseless.
I will ask for more.

Light me up is obvious. "I will ask for more" could relate to how much wattage they consume. Not sure about "beat me senseless", which is why I'm not sure this is right.

Give me the the twists. The spins.
Give me anything but silence.
I shan’t go quietly into the night …

The twists and spins are how a typical light bulb is installed. Lightbulbs also tend to make a popping noise when they die.

I will roar!
Pounding a din most pleasant
With fires raging inside.

The glowing filament inside the bulb could be considered a "fire raging inside".

Already, the shift has begun
Augmenting me with the most current
Soon to be displaced by the very same.

As above, they are already being replaced with fluorescent and LED bulbs.

And while the future whines past
And I am left to dust
Raucous me will be naught but echoes.

Billions of lightbulbs in the world aren't just going to disappear. Landfills will probably be full of them for decades.

I survive by the memories
Of those that swore by my mettle.
Of those that lived my own relentless pursuits.

Incandescent lighting was the first widely used means of illumination after simple fire. It won't be forgotten. Also, the invention of electric lighting was instrumental in the development of many other technologies, if only because it helps to have light to see by when studying other things...