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Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa

            When a soldier returns home from war, some soldiers believe they are expected to act like nothing happened and to fall back into their old routine. Soldiers believe that they are not to talk about what they had to do or what they had to see while at war. Instead, they keep all their feelings and traumas to themselves so that they protect the innocence of the ones they love that have not experienced war. With the poem "Facing It," Yusef Komunyakaa uses imagery to convey the lasting internal effects war has on a person. .
             There is a stereotype against soldiers labeling them as "tough guys." They are not allowed to become emotional in public. Soldiers are to "keep it together" until they are alone before they show any emotion. In lines 1 through 5, the narrator first describes their reflection on the memorial and allows the reader to identify him as an African American. Then the narrator begins to shift and begins describing their personal internal turmoil as they see their face "hiding inside the black granite" (Komunyakaa 2). The reader is able to tune into the narrator's emotions as he are briefly struggling with their grief. "I said I wouldn't. Dammit. No tears" (Komunyakaa 4). The reader can clearly interpret that the narrator is losing his composure. However, in the line that follows, the narrator regains that composure by stating, "I'm stone. I'm flesh" (Komunyakaa 5). The narrator knows that he must not show emotion and quickly regains his bearings. War can also affect a person's mind through time. Those who struggle with the experience of war can often find their mind teetering back and forth from the past to the present wherever they are. A trigger, such as a car backfiring or helicopter passing, can send a war veteran's mind right back to the battlefield. In lines 8 through 13, the narrator describes such triggers as "depending on the light to make a difference" (Komunyakaa 12-13).


Essays Related to Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa

1. Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa

Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa My black face fades, hiding inside the black granite. ... 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. ... Komunyakaa's poem incorporates two contrasts, light and dark and present day and past. ... Yusef depends "on the light to make a difference." ... Komunyakaa sees names "shimmer on a woman's blouse", expecting they would disappear as soon as the woman did, but no, again, the connotations Yusef uses...

  • Word Count: 665
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

2. Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa

Yusef Komunyakaa published his works during an era that is characterized by different events. ... Post-Modernism is most evident as the literary period during Komunyakaa's works. ... In the poem "Facing It" by American author Yusef Komunyakaa, the author uses metaphor, imagery, and symbolism in order to express to his audience the close experience of making his journey to the Vietnam War Veteran's Memorial in Washington, DC. ... A primary tool that Yusef Komunyakaa uses to interconnect his emotions are imagery. ... Furthermore, Yusef uses metaphor to help readers identify h...

  • Word Count: 1172
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography

3. Yusef Komunyakaa - Facing It

In the poem "Facing It," Yusef Komunyakaa, an African-American, solemnly reflects over his experience serving in the Vietnam War while on a visit to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. ... As the poem progresses, Komunyakaa struggles to contain his emotions as his past trials come back to life through a series of flashbacks. ... It is symbolic of not only Komunyakaa's plight during the war, but that of many African-Americans who were drafted or enlisted. ... These lines are indicative of Komunyakaa's main conflict between the present and past. ... Komunyakaa comes to the Vietnam Vete...

  • Word Count: 1041
  • Approx Pages: 4

4. Imagery and Symbols in "Facing It" by Yusef Komunyakaa

In Yusef Komunyakaa's poem, "Facing It"," the poet uses conflicting images and symbols to express these conflicting feelings. ... Komunyakaa uses the wall as a backdrop to express these feelings. ... Then, Komunyakaa uses more instances of imagery. ... Komunyakaa's literary pattern continues, conflicting images and contrasting movement. ... Through his use of imagery and symbols, Komunyakaa turns his reader back and forth. ...

  • Word Count: 1018
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

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