Blog 7 DRS

One of the poems in Yusef Komunyakaa's compilation Dien Cai Dau entitled "2527th Birthday of the Buddha" grapples with the complexities of the anti-war movement perpetuated by the Buddhist monks. The poem is a depiction of the self-immolation of Quang Duc, who executes the act in protest of the Vietnam War. The burning Buddhist monk serves as a symbol for the anti-war movement, as well as a martyr for all those opposed to the senseless brutality of the war. The lines, "a high wind that started in California fanned flames, turned each blue page, leaving only is heart intact" (18) symbolize how American involvement in Vietnam has served only to fan the flames of chaos and disorder in Vietnam, but the indomitable will, power, and emotions of the Vietnam people--as symbolized by the monk's heart remaining intact--can never be devoured by the flames of chaos. The line "could his eyes burn the devil out of men?" (18) symbolizes the sincerity of the act in question, in which the monk hopes to alter our perceptions of the war and enable us to see how horribly the war has effected the Vietnamese. The author also invokes the image of a flower when he states "the other monks & nuns grew around him like petals" (18), the usage of which depicts the act as not an obscene protest but rather a demonstration to promote positivity and peace.

The poem entitled "Toys in a Field" contains several complex themes and messages. The children represent a sort of innocence, which is contrasted by the ravages war in which they play in. The recurring theme of loss of innocence is thus portrayed, as the horrors and wastes of war now serve as the playing ground for which the children to play in. Depicting children fighting represents the soldiers who've fought the war, who were indeed little more than children armed with the expensive toys of war. Using children signifies the soldiers' naivete to the reasons of war and to their surroundings; hardly anyone notices the wreckage to the land they fight in, nor understand the reasoning behind fighting such a war. The concluding lines say much about the war and its aftermath: "...except for the boy with American eyes who keeps singing rat-a-tat-tat, hugging a broken machine gun" (56). The lines depict the lingering resentment of the lost war, with the boy clinging to the broken machine gun. The broken gun may signify the war becoming a lost cause, but the boy continually remains clinging to the gun.

The poem "Losses" depicts a soldier's post-war experiences, and what some soldiers have 'lost' with the war. One of the things many soldiers lose is the sanctity of their sound minds and emotions toPost Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The opening lines, "After Nam he lost himself..." (61) show a descent into illness as part of the PTSD. Many soldiers coming back from Vietnam were forced to grapple with the effects of PTSD later on down the road. Another loss is seen in the familiar motif of the back home, which he has lost since his arrival home. Memories of "punji stakes," once used to snag victims, now only serve to "snag his heart" (61). The concluding lines depict the soldier "following his mind like a dark lover," (61) further perpetuating this idea of one losing themselves to their memories and emotions, succumbing to the PTSD.

The compilation as a whole is an angry depiction of a senseless and brutal war from the perspective of a black soldier. The war has pushed the emotions of everyone involved (and lets face it, EVERYONE was involved), resulting in the heightening of tensions, as well as the massive loss of life. Komunyakaa comments on racial tensions in the war in poems like "Tu Do Street" and "To Have Danced With Death," emphasizing the soldiers of differing race Vietnam, even of the same side, received unequal recognition of their valor and sacrifices.