Response to "An Iraqi Evening" by Yousif al-Sa'igh

Clips from the battlefield 
on an Iraqi evening: 
a peacable home 
two boys preparing their homework 
a little girl 
absentmindedly drawing on scrap paper 
funny pictures. 
--breaking news coming shortly. 
The entire house becomes ears 
ten Iraqi eyes glued to the screen in frightened silence. 
Smells mingle: 
the smell of war 
and the smell of just baked bread. 
The mother raises her eyes to a photo on the wall 
whispering 
--May God protect you 
and begins preparing their supper 
quietly 
while in her mind 
clips of the battlefield flicker by 
carefully selected for hope.

I really enjoyed reading this poem and I chose this poem to read first, because it really caught my attention. We rarely get to read literature from the Middle East, so it was refreshing to read. I guessed what the poem might be about, since Iraq really brings to mind war and the constant violence we witness on the news, but this poem took a different twist by showing us what happens beyond the battle. It took us to someone's home to show us how a regular person's life is like during these battles. We rarely get to see beyond the battle, so I think this is very refreshing and enlightening. It shows us the capability that humans have for adaptation. These people are going about their daily lives, while a battle is going on and it is simply "an Iraqi evening". It has become the norm for them and that really shows us how dangerous war is to desensitizing us to war. I also really liked the juxtaposition of the battle and the normal life and how even though they are separate at first, they eventually mix. The scents of war and baked bread mingle, the people of the house look at the news for information, and the mother looks at a photo and prays for whomever it is. It shows us that although it might seem like the battle is out there and you are here, it isn't really separate. You can't really escape war, as it will always affect you in some way and change your life. Even if you try to gain a sense of normalcy, it won't last long, because the two worlds will collide.

Reflections

Mirror

1) When I first read "Mirror", I really disliked it. I didn't like the way it was written, the syntax, and the rhythm of the text. When I first read it, I didn't really understand what it was supposed to be about, because it is pretty abstract. The second time when I read it, I understood what the poem was about, but I still don't like the way it's written and I still don't like its rhythm. 

2) I feel like the questions that were the easiest for me were ones that asked about the meaning of words in certain contexts, I feel like I really need to work on questions that ask about shifts and questions about rhythm. I'm really bad at rhythm and technical terms like iambic pentameter. 

Dulce et Decorum Est

1) When I first read the poem, I liked it, although I wasn't really paying attention to what it was saying. I liked the way it flowed. The second time I read it, I understood what it was talking about and the second time I looked up what the words at the end mean. I like how the poems is tied back together at the end by those words and how they state clearly what this poem is about, so the meaning is revealed at the end of the poem. 

Discussion

Discussion

1. Three things that I learned from the videos and the packet are:

      a. Analysis isn't personal: you have t talk about how the writer conveys a meaning instead of talking about how you feel towards the story. You also have to tie everything together by pointing to what the author is trying to accomplish. "No what without why."

      b. You should pay attention to the author at all times and stay wary of what they are doing. Even if something seems like it's an accident, you have to treat like everything they do is deliberate. "Structure and meaning of a work are closely connected."

      c. "Do words have secrets?" I never thought about it that way. Words are like boxes with things in them that we can discover, but they are also essentially part of a bigger picture. Their little secrets can stand alone, but contribute to the meaning of the big picture.

2. I feel like I still need to work on tying everything back together. I feel like I do the analysis, but I forget to tie it back to why the author does it. I forget to say what the author's message is. I also need to get better at annotating, because I over do it and end up having too much. This makes me lose focus and makes my mind wander everywhere instead of trying to prove a certain point. I also need to work on analyzing the author's use of diction and syntax, because I generally don't pay attention to those things and they are very important. 

3. I think I am very good at symbolism and allegory. I usually spot those things first and begin to think on what it might mean. I think I could teach someone about how to apply symbolism and how it is used to further meaning in a story.