Unfortunately, it was Paradise by Mahmoud Darwish
**ASSIGNMENT**
(1) Pick two poems from Unfortunately, it was Paradise
Compare and contrast the two poems
**(hint: Since this series of poems spans Darwish's poetic career, one way of doing this might be by choosing two poems written at different times in his life.)
(2) Explain any central themes, identify strong language and tell us about your reaction to each poem.
Recommended length: 1-2 short paragraphs.
**Respond to these questions AND ALSO to at least one of your peers in order to receive full credit.
Poem # 1: He Embraces His Murderer (17)
ReplyDeletePoem # 2: The Stranger Finds Himself in the Stranger (106)
Each of these poems shows an incredible amount of kinship and love of fellow man. The first poem is very empowering how it embraces the enemy and explains that even though the violence is unfounded this will not stop the speaker from loving his fellow man and offering forgiveness for all sins. The second poem has a similar theme, as is obvious with one of the last lines, “we need to return to two, / so we can go on embracing each other.” In both scenarios the speaker is addressing someone unknown and not understood, a stranger, and can still have compassion and find a unity with them. This message of peace in the poems scared by war and oppression is what makes them exceptionally powerful. The most vivid language is the first poem is the images of war, “aims his machine gun at an embrace” and “your mother’s coffee.” These show the conditions of the times and the injustices that are going on. People are not treating each other like people are forgetting the bond that brings all people together and that everyone has in common. In the second poem the most powerful language comes from the stanza about the nomadic existence without a home where there are only “deserted mountains” and “a star residing in its own death.” These lonely images show the hard journey of a man displaced from his home.
By contrast, these two poems are rooted very differently. The first is about redemption and maintaining humanity during difficult times of war and oppression, where as the second beacons an image of traveling and displacement, where nomads must wander far from home and that this brings them together. The problem with being brought together is that when strangers unite to become one, then they both become invisible. In “The Stranger Finds Himself in the Stranger” there are no names or any sort of identification used, other than stranger, which speaks clearly to the message that even when on a journey, lost, it is important to keep ones identity and stay strong with love for other strangers, no matter the background. They must not fade and dissolve into each other and be forgotten, but instead bind together for strength. Both people are displaced and needing to maintain their identity. These poems are extremely powerful and uniting poems that have an impact and meaning that spreads to all areas of the world and to every people. These poems are about unity and not countering injustice with a similar injustice.
1st Poem: “In This Hymn”
ReplyDelete2nd Poem: “A Soldier Dreams of White Tulips”
(1) Pick two poems from Unfortunately, it was Paradise. Compare and contrast the two poems.
The first poem, written earlier in his life, focuses on a soldier’s death. This poem is much more hopeless: it ends in an almost depressing manner by saying “we will survive because life is life.” There is no attempt to change the circumstances; Darwish seems to accept that nothing can be done to change the war or stop the killing of these soldiers. The poem simply states that soldiers will fight and soldiers will die, there is nothing that can be done.
The second poem, however, is a bit more optimistic in the sense that it paints a picture of what life without battles and war deaths would be. He says that that type of life would be about drinking “my mother’s coffee……picnics…white tulips, an olive branch.” By giving these various descriptions from the mouth of a man who has killed in battle, Darwish opens up the possibility that the soldiers do not want to fight; they simply want to come home. With this comes the hope that the war might end.
(2) Explain any central themes, identify strong language and tell us about your reaction to each poem.
One central theme in both poems is the disposability of life. For example, in the first poem, Darwish notes that the soldier’s eyes will no longer be noticed; his body will be covered by sand. Life is quickly erased and quickly forgotten. In the second poem, this is also present when the soldier talks about how he killed a man and found in his pocket photographs of his family. Despite knowing that the other man is someone’s son, someone’s brother, or someone’s father, he was unable to feel pity. A soldier is only concerned about killing when on the battlefield, nothing else matters.
Yet, both the poems also seek to bring awareness and showcase the importance of life and love. One way both poems do this is by highlighting how a mother feels. In the first poem, this theme is demonstrated through the line: “What will absence tell your mother? He slept well?” In the second poem, the idea of drinking mother’s coffee and returning home safely is emphasized. These lines show that the soldiers are not simply killing machines, but people who love and are loved. Soldiers treasure life: they want to have a picnic and drink wine. They want to love and see “rising suns,” not “their setting.” Darwish ensures that in both poems, life is appreciated despite its disposability when on the battlefield. He seeks to emphasize that death is not simply the physical death, but the death of possibilities: the possibility of drinking mother’s coffee, the possibility of having a picnic, and the possibility of enjoying wine. Therefore, life should be respected, especially by soldiers.
Claire,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your discussion of the lines: “we need to return to two, / so we can go on embracing each other.” I think you are correct that Darwish hopes that peace can come about once it is realized that strangers are fellow human beings who love life and seek peace. This relates to the two poems that I talked about. In those poems, Darwish emphasizes that soldiers want to enjoy life and they don’t want to fight. Although on the battlefield it is easy to forget that the other side consists of fellow humans, Darwish recognizes that soldiers do appreciate life outside the war zone. But even on the battlefield, the importance of life must not be forgotten.
Jeyshree,
ReplyDeleteI found your ideas on the first two poems very interesting as you pointed out that the second poem was more optimistic. I agree with this, however it is still a very harsh poem when contrasted with the reality of war and the injustice that these men who are all the same inside and not wanting the violence are nevertheless killing each other. These two poems show a great amount of very personal detail of specific events and of certain soldiers stories. As you discussed, I think that this is a powerful tool in remembering that every soldier is an individual and a mother's son. They are doing their duty and are not personal enemies to each other. I particularly enjoyed your analysis on the idea of life being disposable in a situation of war, but that this should not make people insignificant.
I used the poems "I Talk Too Much" (p.13) and "Poetic Regulations" (85)
ReplyDelete(1) Pick two poems from Unfortunately, it was Paradise. Compare and contrast the two poems
These two poems are about similar topics, but it's interesting to see the way Darwish's identity has changed over time. In "I Talk Too Much," a younger Darwish writes about talking about himself, his "country with no passport stamp" to anyone who will listen in order to receive a three minute gratification that perhaps, perhaps if these people approve of his right to return he will be able to journey back to his own country. But, he finds that he's talking about "the difference between a mirage and the rain" — something that he sees as being so real, but that might just be evanescent dreams. In "Poetic Regulations" an older, distinctly quieter and perhaps wiser but less optimistic Darwish writes about the stars teaching him how to read, teaching him that he "had a language in heaven and another language on earth". that perhaps his language can do only so much, and he ends by asking, "Who am I? Who am I?". This Darwish is a little more jaded perhaps, less sure of who he is, questioning why he, unlike sailors who "love wine/and never return twice to the same woman" feels he must return to his country, longs for his country and regrets that he cannot be as flighty as they. He questions whether this futile attempt to return to Palestine is really ... not worth it, but possible. Whereas he once had faith that if he spoke enough he could make the world see his longing, he now seems to see that his language on earth isn't holy or bright enough to make people see.
(2) Explain any central themes, identify strong language and tell us about your reaction to each poem.
The central theme is return to homeland, the end of longing. These poems made me sigh, or perhaps gasp. They are just so beautiful, subtle and elegant and full of so much meaning that is found in the little moments. He doesn't shout his feelings at you, but instead slides them into your head so sweet, like slipping a love letter under a door. They are chock full of strong language. From "I Talk Too Much": "Is it true, good ladies and gentlemen, that the earth of Man is for all/human beings/as you say? In that case, where is my little cottage, and where am I?" and "The conference approves our right of return,/like all chickens and horses, to a dream made of stone." MY GOD!
In "Poetic Regulations": "Who am I? Who am I?/I don't want to answer yet./May a star fall into itself,/and may a forest of chestnut trees rise in the night/toward the Milky Way with me, and may it say:/Remain here!" he wants a divine directive. In truth, this entire poem is full of strong language and I'm loathe to copy it here. It's just extraordinary and I get way too excited looking at it again. "I haven't died of love yet" oh wow.
that was noor by the way
ReplyDeleteI read the poems "I talk too much" and "The Stranger Finds Himself a Stranger," which take place in different points of time in Darwish's writing and life. The central theme of 'unfortunately it was paradise' is Darwish's wish to return home and the transition of his life, and how he perceives it. Although life is shown to be almost insignificant, the relationships and power of it is also displayed.
ReplyDelete"I talk too much" was written in the beginning of the compilation and in his life. Darwish is describing himself to anyone who will listen. On the other hand, "The Stranger Finds Himself a Stranger" is written in the end, but at the same time still has the same vibe as the first poem. I say this because there are no names or identities used in the second poem, making the people seem just as confused and dislocated as the first poem written earlier on in his life. I got almost a nomadic feeling from the poem in that after all this time, he and the person he is talking about is still trying to discover who they are and where they belong, similarly to the first poem.
Like I said before, the poems had a theme about life, relationships, and the movement of life. It kind of left me with an unsettling feeling, after so much time still feeling lost in his poems and unable to identify himself and the person close to him. I thought it was pretty significant in the second poem that no names or identities were used at all.
Claire:
ReplyDeleteI like your analysis of the two poems, leading to your central theme of this book, maybe because I came to similar conclusions. I really enjoyed your discussion by bringing soldiers into your post because it's true that the value of life and its significance is really shown with soldiers and war. Suddenly life is so much more fragile and the thought of it ending very soon becomes a possibility, making one appreciate and recognize the importance and disposability of life so much more.
The poems I decided to read was also “I talk too much” and “The Stranger Finds Himself a Stranger”. Like Tammy I saw that “I talk too much” was all about the description of Darwish. Which was off back different from “The Stranger Finds himself a Stranger” which didn’t have any names or identities. This aspect of the second poem made it kind similar to the second one because they characters did seem as lost and confused in the second one just like the first. The title that Darwish uses for the second one seems like the reader is about to get to know these two characters personally, but you don’t even get a name which through me off. I was expecting the second poem to have the most exact details, but it kind of did the opposite. That made me feel like Tammy, that there actually was significance in why he didn’t use names in the second poem. After reading I felt kind of bad that he knew so much but so little about each other.
ReplyDelete@ Tammy
ReplyDeleteDon't really have very much to say, but I did agree with your comments. I saw a similar connection between "I talk too much" and "The Stranger Finds Himself a Stranger" when I read them. Also you can really tell how Darwish's identity changes over time. However, its interesting to see how in these two poems he seems to not have found himself but rather further lose himself in confusion.