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. A summary and analysis of yusef komunyakaas facing it. The poem begins with the reflection of komunyakaas face dissolving into. When reading the poem one can assume that komanuyakaa drew upon his own experiences in vietnam, expressing his hardship over a thirtyone lines. Unfortunately, humanity fully cognized the term of war. Free imagery and symbols in facing it by yusef komunyakaa essay.
Marvin and others published komunyakaas facing it find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. In yusef komunyakaa s poem, facing it, the poet uses conflicting images and symbols to express these conflicting feelings. In yusef komunyakaa s poem facing it, a quality the. Komunyakaa served in vietnam and was discharged from the army in 1966, during which time he wrote for army newspaper southern cross. Jun 30, 2009 i met my wife in a bookstore and read her my poetry before our first conversation was over. I turn that wayim inside the vietnam veterans memorial again, depending on the light to make a. 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 bronze star he began writing poetry in 1973, and received his bachelors degree from the.
Yusef komunyakaa was born in 1947 in the quiet mill town of bogalusa, louisiana. I met my wife in a bookstore and read her my poetry before our first conversation was over. Throughout this poem, there are 3 images that i felt had a stronger literal and figurative meaning behind this poem. Facing it, by yusef komunyakaa talks about a war which most, if not all americans are familiar with. Books by yusef komunyakaa author of neon vernacular.
His grandparents were church people and he has said in interview the old testament informed the cadences of their speech. Analysis of facing it by yusef komunyakaa 1007 words 5 pages. Start your 48hour free trial to unlock this facing it study guide and get instant. 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. A literary analysis of the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa. Komunyakaa began writing in 1973, after achieving his bachelors degree university of colorado springs. My black face fades, hiding inside the black granite. Start studying facing it, yusef komunyakaa, 101810, intro to lit. Yusef komunyakaa lesson plans and teaching resources yusef komunyakaa at the academy of american poets biography, links to a few poems and other sites. Yusef komunyakaa, born in 1947, wrote both february in sydney and facing it. There are no numbers because the devices seemed to interconnect in my mind.
Read more at by visiting the link beneath the video. The poem, facing it by yusef komunyakaa, that this quote is pulled from relates to this childrens book the wall. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa what lies within the text. The exsoldier finds himself staring his past in the face. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa is a 31 line poem that does not adhere to any particular rhyme scheme or strictly metered pattern. Jun 12, 2014 yusef komunyakaa reads his poem facing it about seeing the vietnam veterans memorial wall in washington, d. Learn about yusef komunyakaa s influences that helped shape facing it, and other important details about yusef komunyakaa. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa free essays facing it by yusef komunyakaa. Facing it is a poem that encapsulates numerous themes and points of view regarding the vietnam war and related issues. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa that english teacher. Historical and literary context for yusef komunyakaas facing it.
Facing it, discusses his visit to the vietnam memorial in washington d. 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. Analysis of facing it by yusef komanuyakaa yusef komanuyakaas poem facing it is a cold example of the affects that war leaves upon men. Several years following the vietnam war, yusef komunyakaa, being a vietnam survivor himself, writes the poem, facing it, allowing his emotions to resurface while he views the vietnam memorial. Imagery and symbols in facing it by yusef komunyakaa. On april 29, 1947, yusef komunyakaa was born in bogalusa, louisiana, where he was raised during the beginning of the civil rights movement. Komunyakaa has composed this poem by alternating between short choppy lines and longer, drawn out phrases.
First, the title is a clear summary of yusef komunyakaas poem. Analysis of facing it by yusef komunyakaa essay example. Identify one specific quality of the speaker in facing it by yusef. This poem was very well written, and i respect all that was said in the context of the poem. Boston university, 236 bay state road, boston, ma 02215 email. C so that he could visit and read the names of his fallen comrades. He served a tour of duty in vietnam, where he was also a writer and the managing editor for the military. The poem is written in short, dense, freeverse lines. This website and its content is subject to our terms and conditions. Connell 8 october 20 komunyakaa s poems of sorrow and guilt yusef komunyakaa was born in 1947, in bogalusa, louisiana. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Returning vietnam veterans had an especially hard time reconnecting to the world upon their return home.
In the poem facing it by yursef komunyakaa talks a lot about people facing war and guilt and sorrow. In memoriam this lesson uses facing it to explore poems written for a specific occasion. I turn that wayim inside the vietnam veterans memorial again, depending on the light to make a difference. One of komunyakaa s most frequently anthologized poems, facing it was first published in his collection dien cai dau, 1988. In the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa, it is about a vietnam veteran who goes to the vietnam memorial wall in washington d. Facing it is a poem by american poet and author yusef komunyakaa. Yusef komunyakaa has 64 books on goodreads with 167 ratings. Facing the wall i turn this waythe stone lets me go. 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. 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. Learn about the different symbols such as stone in facing it and how they contribute to the plot of the book. This study guide for yusef komunyakaas facing it offers summary and analysis on themes, symbols, and other literary devices found in the text. Youthcultureisrichwithpoetry,fromsonglyricsthatteensread. Thus, they return home with the cumbersome burden of the nostalgic horrors that they have endured.
Engage your students during remote learning with video readalouds. My clouded reflection eyes me like a bird of prey, the profile of night slanted against morning. Yusef komunyakaa reads his poem facing it about seeing the vietnam veterans memorial wall in washington, d. Facing it by yusef komunyaka by danilsa ynfante on prezi. 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. In yusef komunyakaas poem facing it, a quality the narrator demonstrates is. Yusef komunyakaas most popular book is neon vernacular.
Facing it is telling a story of a person who is visiting the vietnam war memorial. In the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa, the author uses first person narration, metaphor, simile, images of light and darkness, personification, allusion and word connotation in order to convey to his detached audience the intimate. Dec 09, 20 this one i have explicated differently than the previous posts. Facing it is a free verse poem of 31 lines in total, a single stanza without a rhyme scheme or regular meter metre in british english it is very much a personal approach, written in first person, which tells the reader that this is one individual facing whatever it is that might follow. 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. Every time that he is looking at the names on the memorial he is seeing his friends and himself fighting side by side. It is the second poem written by komunyakaa about vietnam. An essay or paper on use of narration in the poem, facing it. He sees the gruesome deaths of his compatriots in the many. Feb 19, 2015 in the poem facing it by yursef komunyakaa talks a lot about people facing war and guilt and sorrow. A poem from a poet worth checking out, if you havent done so already, yusef komunyakaas blackberries speaks. The ever so controversial vietnam conflict, also known as the vietnam war.
Yusef komunyakaa’s poem facing it describes a vietnam war veteran’s painful experience of visiting the vietnam veterans memorial in washington. Nostalgic memories in yusef komunyakaas facing it essay. In 1984, komunyakaa began to reflect on his experiencesalthough his decision to write about vietnam wasnt entirely deliberate. When reading the poem one can assume that komanuyakaa drew upon his own experiences in vietnam, expressing his hardship over a.
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. This poem was very well written, and i respect all that was said in the con. 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. Komunyakaa is a recipient of the 1994 kingsley tufts poetry award, for neon vernacular and the 1994 pulitzer prize for poetry. Son of a carpenter he was raised in a house of few books at the beginning of the civil rights movement. In yusef komunyakaas poem facing it, a quality the. The dangerous road before martin luther king james baldwin letter from a birmingham jail martin luther king, jr. Read this english essay and over 89,000 other research documents.
The speaker is a vietnam veteran visiting the vietnam veterans memorial in. Analysis of facing it by yusef komunyakaa cruel and terrible events forever leave a mark on our memory. Komunyakaa uses his childhood experiences to inform many of his works. The speaker of the poem, whom the reader can assume is komunyakaa himself, faces the vietnam veterans memorial wall with all of these feelings. The favorite poem project a partnership among boston university, the library of congress and other organizations with major funding from the national endowment from the arts and the carnegie corporation of new york. In facing it yusef komunyakaa presents sensory details, thoughts, and impressions without judgment or contextualizing information. 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 bronze star. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa poems academy of american poets. Analysis of poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa owlcation. Jun 09, 2017 what makes great poetry a brief analysis of yusef komunyakaas blackberries. Especially, when these events are directly related to person, the memory reproduces every second of what happened. Tes global ltd is registered in england company no 02017289 with its registered office at 26 red lion square london wc1r 4hq. A vietnam veteran turned poet, yusef komunyakaa, writes about such an instance in his poem facing it. Yusef komunyakaa links to poems, biography, bibliography, and commentary.
Therefore, his themes are not clearcut statements but rather complex impressions that allow for a wide variety of interpretations. Facing it by yusef komunyakaa speaks of one mans reaction to seeing the. Yusef komunyakaa at the academy of american poets biography, links to a few poems and other sites. Reflecting on his experiences, yusef expresses his conflicting feelings about the vietnam. We make sure to reply to every comment submitted, so feel free to join the. Both their mental and physical stresses, compounded by the fact that there were a large number of people who chose to hate. Yusef komunyakaa grew up in the deep south during the dawn of the civil rights movement. Yusef komunyakaa was born on 29 april 1947 in bogalusa, louisiana. Komunyakaa is a recipient of the 1994 kingsley tufts poetry award, for neon vernacular and the 1994 pulitzer.
It is a reflection on komunyakaa s first visit to the vietnam veterans memorial. Use of imagery and figurative language in facing it by. Both of these styles of writing utilize enjambment. Feb 19, 2015 the poem facing it by yusef komunyakaa, he discusses the aftermath of the vietnam war and the emotional effect it had on him as one of the soldiers. Among the three images that stood out to me was my black face fades, hiding inside the black granite. Yusef komunyakaa s most popular book is neon vernacular. 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.
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