A summary and analysis of yusef komunyakaas facing it this post brings to you a summary and analysis of the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa. Yusef komunyakaa s poem facing it is the concluding poem of his 1988 book dien cai dau which means both crazy and american soldier in vietnamese, a book of poems that deals with komunyakaa s experience as a black soldier during the vietnam war. By closing this message, you are consenting to our use of cookies. His grandparents were church people and he has said in interview the old testament informed the cadences of their speech. The poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa is about a man who came back from war and is now dealing with the negative side of it. My clouded reflection eyes me like a bird of prey, the profile of night slanted against morning. The poem is inspired from the experiences of the poet during the vietnam war, where he worked as a correspondent and managing editor of a military newspaper.
The designer of the vietnam veterans memorial, maya lin, submitted her plans for the monument to a national competition and won, beating out over 1,400 other designs. A vietnam veteran, he did not write about the war until more than a decade after returning to the united states. The first line of the poem, my black face fades, hiding inside the black granite. In 1984, komunyakaa began to reflect on his experiencesalthough his decision to write about vietnam wasnt entirely deliberate. It is the policy of ncte in its journals and other publications to provide a fo. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa is a 31 line poem that does not adhere to any particular rhyme scheme or strictly metered pattern. Yusef komunyakaa was born in 1947 in the quiet mill town of bogalusa, louisiana. Every time that he is looking at the names on the memorial he is seeing his friends and himself fighting side by side. About this poet yusef komunyakaa was born in bogalusa, louisiana. A deeper understanding of the theme of temporality and permanence in ozymandias and an ode to a grecian urn essay pages. This website and its content is subject to our terms and conditions. Facing it is a poem by american poet and author yusef komunyakaa.
Dien cai dau presents yusef komunyakaas time in vietnam in what feels like the truest way through poetry. Analysis of facing it by yusef komunyakaa essay example. The poem is inspired from the experiences of the poet during the vietnam war, where he worked as a. My black face fades, hiding inside the black granite. Facing the vietnam veterans memorial wall, yusef komunyakaa began to reflect on all the things that had been pushed from his mind for years. Remote work advice from the largest allremote company. The poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa has a substantial amount of imagery. Yusef komunyakaa s facing it is poem about the authors visit to the vietnam veterans memorial and his personal experiences in the vietnam war. Learn about the different symbols such as stone in facing it and how they contribute to the plot of the book. He served in the united states army from 1969 to 1970 as a correspondent, and as managing editor of the southern cross during the vietnam war, earning him a. Produced by johns hopkins university press in collaboration with the sheridan libraries. His face blending into the black granite, yusef komunyakaa s reflection takes him back into the blackness of the war 847. Environmental education resources to commemorate earth days 50th anniversary.
The son of a carpenter, komunyakaa has said that he was first alerted to the power. By presenting two conflicting interpretations of this same reflection, komunyakaa paints a fuller picture of the many shades of truth in. Yusef komunyakaa and facing it facing it is a poem that deals with the personal angst of the speaker, a vietnam veteran, who is visiting the vietnam war memorial in washington dc. A summary and analysis of yusef komunyakaa s facing it this post brings to you a summary and analysis of the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa. Jun 30, 2009 i met my wife in a bookstore and read her my poetry before our first conversation was over. The title of the poem is facing it, which is,he is facing a black wall with the names of other veterans of the vietnam war, but the deeper meaning is a man who is facing his past or memories of the war and what it has. Yusef wrote the poem after returning home from vietnam. Vietnam memorial research paper at the essay pages. Yusef komunyakaa yusef komunyakaa poems poem hunter. Yusef komunyakaa s poem facing it is not broken into stanzas. Yusef komunyakaa reads his poem facing it about seeing the vietnam veterans memorial wall in washington, d. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa that english teacher. Facing it is a poem that deals with the personal angst of the speaker, a vietnam veteran, who is visiting the vietnam war memorial in. He has published nine books of poetry and teaches at princeton university.
One of komunyakaas most frequently anthologized poems, facing it was first published in his collection dien cai dau, 1988. Yusef komunyakaa, born in 1947, wrote both february in sydney and facing it. My clouded reflection eyes me like a bird of prey, the. To learn about our use of cookies and how you can manage your cookie settings, please see our cookie policy. Therefore, his themes are not clearcut statements but rather complex impressions that allow for a wide variety of interpretations. Analysis of poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa owlcation.
Yusef komunyakaa was born on 29 april 1947 in bogalusa, louisiana. Jun 09, 2017 what makes great poetry a brief analysis of yusef komunyakaas blackberries. The very first line strongly shows this, it says, my black face fades. It is the second poem written by komunyakaa about vietnam. One of his most famous poems, facing it, brings the reader. Analysis of facing it by yusef komunyakaa 1007 words 5 pages. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa is a 31 line poem that does not adhere to any. Yusef komunyakaa displays this through his many poems about the. Komunyakaa has composed this poem by alternating between short choppy lines and longer, drawn out phrases. Facing it is a poem that encapsulates numerous themes and points of view regarding the vietnam war and related issues. I turn this waythe stone lets me go i turn that wayim inside speaker vs. The poem blackberries written by yusef komunyakaa is about childhood innocence. The son of a carpenter, komunyakaa has said that he was first alerted to the power of language through his grandparents, who were church people.
Which harry potter hogwarts house do you belong to. It was 14 years after the war that he finally wrote the poem. The poem begins with the reflection of komunyakaas face dissolving into the polished black stone as he stares into it for the first time. This poem was very well written, and i respect all that was said in the con. In komunyakaas facing it, we get an in depth look at the personal casualties and inner conflict set between the veteran and his inability to cope with the memories he is having. Connell 8 october 20 komunyakaa s poems of sorrow and guilt yusef komunyakaa was born in 1947, in bogalusa, louisiana. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa speaks of one mans reaction to seeing the vietnam veterans memorial in washington, d. I go down the 58,022 names58,022 names the number of names of dead soldiers etched on the wall at the time of komunyakaas composing of this poem. Son of a carpenter he was raised in a house of few books at the beginning of the civil rights movement.
Fonts facing it by yusef komunyakaa analysis biography. Facing it, by yusef komunyakaa talks about a war which most, if not all americans are familiar with. His face blending into the black granite, yusef komunyakaas reflection takes him back into the blackness of the war 847. Komunyakaa won the pulitzer prize in 1994 yusef komunyakaa.
In its dizzying sequence of images that juxtapose violence and beauty, the. This poem was very well written, and i respect all that was said in the context of the poem. Yusef komunyakaa writes movingly about his vietnam war experience in his poem facing it. The most well known part of the vietnam veterans memorial is the vietnam veterans memorial wall, which is the focal point of facing it. The literal meaning is that his face is fading away. Born in bogalusa, louisiana in 1947, yusef komunyakaa was the first black man to win a pulitzer prize for poetry 1994. The poem facing it also written by yusef komunyakaa is written about memories and sorrows of the vietnam war.
The speaker is a vietnam veteran visiting the vietnam veterans memorial in. One of his most famous poems, facing it, brings the reader into the. Yusef komunyakaa born april 29, 1941 is an american poet who teaches at new york university and is a member of the fellowship of southern writers. Facing it by yusef komunyaa is a poem about vietnam. Yusef komunyakaas facing it free essays, term papers. Yusef komunyakaa questions and answers discover the community of teachers, mentors and students just like you that can answer any question you might have on yusef komunyakaa. Komunyakaa writes like a soldier commands direct and abrupt, detailing action and reaction as it is and as should follow.
Reflecting on his experiences, yusef expresses his conflicting feelings about the vietnam. At the time komunyakaa first published facing it, the total number of names listed on the wall was the number he reported in the poem. A familiar sight at the vietnam veterans memorial vvm in washington, d. Read all poems of yusef komunyakaa and infos about yusef komunyakaa. Poems, readings, poetry news and the entire 100year archive of poetry magazine. Both of these styles of writing utilize enjambment. Tes global ltd is registered in england company no 02017289 with its registered office at 26 red lion square london wc1r 4hq. The black wall of the memorial evokes all kinds of wartorn images from the violent past which are full of agony and pain. A poem from a poet worth checking out, if you havent done so already, yusef komunyakaas blackberries speaks. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa poems academy of american poets.
Farkas 1 kaitlin farkas english 102 david rodriguez october 14. Feb 19, 2015 in the poem facing it by yursef komunyakaa talks a lot about people facing war and guilt and sorrow. Facing it yusef komunyakka 1988 by michael bradley birthplace yusef komunyakaa was born in bogalusa, louisiana on april 29, 1947. Use of imagery and figurative language in facing it by. Use of imagery and figurative language in facing it by yusef komunyakaa in his poem, facing it, yusef komunyakaa describes his ambivalent emotions towards the vietnam war of which he was a veteran. Facing it is telling a story of a person who is visiting the vietnam war memorial. Jun 12, 2014 yusef komunyakaa reads his poem facing it about seeing the vietnam veterans memorial wall in washington, d. Yusef komunyakaa s tu do street and camouflaging the chimera essay pages.
A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. It is a reflection on komunyakaa s first visit to the vietnam veterans memorial. These poems were written as a way of talking around an idea or question, this idea question being that of growing up during the civil rights movement. Komunyakaa is a recipient of the 1994 kingsley tufts poetry award, for neon vernacular and the 1994 pulitzer prize for poetry. Part of the poetry everywhere project airing on public television. Especially, when these events are directly related to person, the memory reproduces every second of what happened. Unfortunately, humanity fully cognized the term of war. Learn about yusef komunyakaa s influences that helped shape facing it, and other important details about yusef komunyakaa.
Facing it my black face fades, poet yusef komunyakaa first received wide recognition following the 1984 publication of copacetic, a collection of poems built from colloquial speech which demonstrated his incorporation of jazz influences. Author visual imagery metaphors flashbacks allusion vernacular symbol facing it 1947present born in louisiana. Komunyakaa began writing in 1973, after achieving his bachelors degree university of colorado springs. In the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa the author uses great imagery that has both literal and figurative meaning behind them. In the poem facing it by yursef komunyakaa talks a lot about people facing war and guilt and sorrow. Komunyakaa uses his childhood experiences to inform many of his works. Komunyakaa served in vietnam and was discharged from the army in 1966, during which time he wrote for army newspaper southern cross. In facing it, only the second poem hed written in retrospect about vietnam, komunyakaa s response to his war experience is deeply shaped by his visit, a year earlier, to lins memorial.
A summary and analysis of yusef komunyakaas facing it. In the following excerpt, ringnalda discusses the vietnam veterans memorial, the centerpiece of komunyakaas facing it. One of komunyakaa s most frequently anthologized poems, facing it was first published in his collection dien cai dau, 1988. I turn that wayim inside the vietnam veterans memorial again, depending on the light. In facing it yusef komunyakaa presents sensory details, thoughts, and impressions without judgment or contextualizing information.
On april 29, 1947, yusef komunyakaa was born in bogalusa, louisiana, where he was raised during the beginning of the civil rights movement. Facing it by yusef komunyaka by danilsa ynfante on prezi. Analyzing theme in facing it by yusef komunyakka essay. This is a 10 question quiz on yusef komunyakaa s facing it. Dien cai dau presents yusef komunyakaa s time in vietnam in what feels like the truest way through poetry. Analysis of facing it by yusef komunyakaa cruel and terrible events forever leave a mark on our memory. Yusef komunyakaa poems, quotations and biography on yusef komunyakaa poet page. The speaker of the poem is at the vietnam veterans memorial in.
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