Images of Disaster: Facing the Vietnam War with the Senses

Abstract

The article sets out to analyze the manner in which Yusef Komunjakaa addresses in his poetry one of the greatest military disasters in American foreign policy ‒ the war in Vietnam‒, which he himself experienced directly, as a war correspondent. I will investigate the poet’s reliance on strong, visceral images as Komunjakaa proceeded almost like a painter. I will also look into the role played by music, jazz in particular, in articulating a vision of the war which gives ample space to the reader to negotiate the images that engage all five senses. I will illustrate the fact that Komunjakaa’s war poetry is characterized by more than a mere documentary drive, as one can discover healing and renewal of the self behind the apocalyptic images that describe the war.