Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa
In "Facing It" by Komunyakaa, a Vietnam War Veteran stands traumatized next to the memorial which he visits. Throughout the poem, Komunyakaa focuses a lot on the physical setting. He gives many parts of the setting, like mentioning he's "inside the Vietnam Veterans Memorial" (10-11), describes "a red bird's wings cutting across my stare" (22-23), and talks about "a plane in the sky" (24). I believe Komunyakaa talks about the setting so much to share the sense of trauma instilled inside the veteran. When someone is traumatized, some of the symptoms include dissociation, where people almost become motionless. The veteran states "I'm stone" (5), merely observing things around him in the setting, instead of being alive. I believe Komunyakaa is trying to show us how seriously trauma affects people.
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I like how you interpreted "Facing It" when talking about the things he sees such as " a red birds wings cutting across my stare" or " a plane in the sky" perhaos these images do more then associate perhaps they are such strong images because they cause the flash back he associates them with things from vietnam. Red symbolizes many things strength, force power all of which in the military you are trained to have. Or perhaps even blood? He speaks about a freidn he even witnesed dying. The plane as well could be flashbacks to planes dropping bombs or carry soldiers. Many soldiers who fight wars suffer post traumatic stress diorder. Even the slightest of this that remind you could set you off. Maybe this is another reason for his motionless?
ReplyDeleteHow do you mean "motionless"? Yes, the poem's iamgery is ambiguous, playing roles in the present and the past, as well as the outside/objective fact and inside/speaker's psyclology--another way of implying, too, that there is not purely objective observation/fact...but the main thing here is to see how the conflicting image patterns, cutting across the poem, "mirror" tensions in the speaker...
ReplyDeleteThat could be another reason for his motionlessness. I forgot that flashbacks are a major part of trauma. What I mean by motionless is sort of like lifeless, or no soul left. I see what you mean with the images having a lot to do with the tension and tone of the speaker.
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