Yusef Komunyakaa Essays

As a young man, before college, Yusef Komunyakaa left his hometown Bogalusa, Louisiana and traveled to Vietnam as a War Correspondent for the Southern Cross Newspaper. He followed the many the many young soldiers, who were drafted into the wasteland of battle. His primary goal was to uncover the truth of the world with the clear accuracy of a journalist, but he came out of the war a poet, with terror seared into his psyche. In his book of poetry Dien Cai Dau, his simple language, dense imagery, and

“Facing It” by Yusef Komunyakaa uses many literary techniques to describe the man’s internal battle due to events he had seen in the Vietnam War. As Yusef examines the wall, he sees names and is reminded of his fellow comrades who lost their lives. Yusef has an internal struggle because he really does not know what to feel. He is really conflicted by the wall. The title really explains how Yusef is feeling. He is facing the fact that he was in a terrible time in his life called war. Yusef feels like

Yusef Komunyakaa’s poem and Stephen Crane's excerpt factor similar and different events throughout their stories. While Crane’s piece is written from one man’s point of view, Komunyakaa uses the collective voice of a group of soldiers. In Crane’s excerpt, it talks more about fighting, what’s happening and going on in the war. In the poem, it talks more about what the soldiers do to mask their feelings and their emotions to stay strong and not get distracted thinking of memories of family. Although

The Importance of Accepting Truth In “Facing It” Yusef Komunyakaa discusses the importance of accepting harsh truths as a tool for healing and personal growth. The concept is also found In Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, where the topic of accountability plays a major role. Both pieces underline the idea of confronting reality, no matter how difficult, to self-improve. In Sophocles' Oedipus the King, the protagonist's denial of truth has everlasting consequences, emphasizing the importance of facing

Nostalgia and homecoming are two linked themes, both of them relate to the subject of returning home, either just in thought or physically coming home, and the emotions that are stirred up by that return. The movie Cold Mountain demonstrates that set of emotions that people often experience while being away from home, for whatever reason, and while trying to get back home. The movie takes place during a civil war and all of the characters are experiencing feelings of home sickness and nostalgia as

The poem “Facing it” by Yusef Komunyakaa is a deep poem that shows the aftereffects of war in modern society. The article called: “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders Among Vietnam Veterans”, by Robinowitz and Walter Penk shows the cultural context we need to understand about soldiers after the Vietnam War. By analyzing the article and the poem together we will discover the full cultural context and meaning behind the poem. The message of the poem is that PTSD is a serious issue that has been ignored

Countless people start their lives in situations that they would not have picked for themselves if they had been given the choice. This seems to be the case in the poem “Blackberries” by Yusef Komunyakaa. The speaker reflects on what he had to do as a child and seems to feel guilty and regretful of his actions.The speaker in this poem seems to be reminiscing on his life as a child and the things he could not have yet in life. The speaker uses the simile “They left my hands like a printer’s / Or

The Aftermath of War: “Facing It” by Yusef Komunyakaa The Vietnam War remains a topic of unimaginable interest 39 years after the official cessation of hostilities between the American and the Communist Vietnam forces. There is no gainsaying that the war, which occurred between 1965 and 1975 had a lasting and profound effect on combatants on all sides. “On many levels and in many different ways, the process of coming to terms with the Vietnam war continues to unfold. As Morley Safer writes, each

by individuals across the globe; a question which the poems “The Gift” by Li-Young Lee and “My Father’s Love Letters” by Yusef Komunyakaa set out to find the answer to. Both poems are narrated by their author and are about their relationship with their father. However, the narrator of “The Gift”, Li-Young Lee, had a positive relationship with his father. In contrast, Komunyakaa had a negative father-son relationship in “My Father’s Love Letters”. The parent-child relationships in the poems reveal

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Photograph + the poem “Facing It” by Yusef Komunyakaa Ochsner, J.K. (1997, February). A Space of Loss: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial On November 11, 1982, 10 years after the end of the Vietnam War which tore the United States apart, the VVM or Vietnam Veterans Memorial was completed. 10 years of battle field with deep bitter emotions of shame, anger and painful fights, finally the heroism and brave sacrifices of the soldiers who fought during that 10 years of nightmare

In the poem “Glory” the writer Yusef Komunyakaa is trying to explain that everyone can achieve glory. He starts out by saying that “most were married teenagers, working knockout shifts daybreak to sunset six days a week.” When he says this he is stating that not everyone is born into glory but can still experience it. Then he goes on to say. “They were all Jackie Robinson and Willie Mays, a touch of Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige.” The reason he uses the names of these famous individuals is to show

Yusef Komunyakaa in his poem, “Facing It.”, the topic of the Vietnam War and the memorial are used. In which, during the period when the memorial was released there was much controversy surrounding it because of how there were many differing point of views regarding the war and why it even started. Moreover, during that time period much of the homefront was very chaotic due to these different opinions, which led to political unrest and violence during that time. Therefore, especially when this poem

Yusef Komunyakaa is like no other poet. He experiences make his poetry seem as if the reader is actually in the poem. Yusef was born on April 29th 1947, he was born in the of Bogalusa, Louisiana. He had five other siblings of which he was the oldest. Komunyakaa had a young adult experience in war which has had an effect on his writing and poetry since his years serving. He started writing poetry in 1969 while he was still in Vietnam and later continued writing. He left the army in 1970 and attended

Yusef Komunyakaa, the author of “Facing It,” is a Vietnam Veteran who appears to write as a means to express his grief, pain, and postwar experiences. Being a Veteran myself and having been to the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. several times, I empathize with Komunyakaa. The first thing I noticed upon walking down the path to the monument was how quiet and peaceful it was, yet the sorrow and pain was deeply rooted. I located the names of family, friends, and the MIA Marine’s name “CAPT RICHARD

In the poem Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa, I had a strong connection to the idea of not being seen or understood. No matter who the individual is, I can almost guarantee there has been a moment where they've felt unseen. I found this is an emotion quite vividly shared throughout the poem. Personally, I felt the poem shares this emotional story allowing readers like myself to connect even though we might not have the exact same experiences. I feel this is also conveyed in the mood of the poem. In

Yusef Komunyakaa composed Blackberries in 1992 who told the story of himself as a little boy who picked berries and sold them for a living. In Blackberries, Yusef Komunyakaa fixated on the theme of social class by utilizing imagery, metaphors, and allusions to depict the poem. Yusef balanced between the world of wealthy and poor; usage of plethora images and metaphors to illustrate the boy’s perplexed lifestyle while living in a rural world. 　　　　In the poem was the continuous use of imagery, which

“Facing It”, a poem by Yusef Komunyakaa, is found in Dien Cai Dau, which was published in 1988. Komunyakaa was born and raised in Bogalusa, La. Being that I am from Bogalusa, I had the instant draw to this poem by this poet. The second reason I chose this poem was because of the ample research I found on this poem and the poet. Yusef Komunyakaa’s work falls under Surrealism and Jazz Poetry. The reason I chose the resources I did was because they were the only ones I could find and they brought a

"Tunnels" by Yusef Komunyakaa is a poem that defines the experiences of the Vietnam War for the public. This shows harsh, but true faces of the war. The author sounds like a knowledgeable witness to the war so that his poem has a direct connection to the war and shows a very authentic voice. When I read "Tunnels" for the first time I thought of a soldier that is hiding in tunnels, running away from the enemy trying to save himself because that is what imagery comes into mind after reading the title

“Facing It”, written by Yusef Komunyakaa, tells a story of the long list of names on the granite Vietnam Memorial in Washington D.C. The speaker is able to show a great deal of emotion which was able to bring forth emotions in me. After reading this poem I was filled with feelings of gratefulness, sadness, and pride. My grandfather is a veteran of the Vietnam War and I remember when I was a young child making visits to my grandparents house seeing my grandfather in uniform posted in frames on the

The Poem “Facing It” by Yusef Komunyakaa is a poem about the memorial veterans and memory of the Vietnam War. The poem is about a black man visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. This man served in the Vietnam War and he is lucky that he did not lie down like other soldiers. The poem’s purpose is to remind us about the Vietnam War and how sadness it is to experiencing the loss of our soldiers. To completely understand “Facing It,” It helps to examine the three elements theme, Tone, and symbol. The