WORLD WAR II AND VIETNAM WAR IN POETRY: CHARLES SIMIC AND YUSEF KOMUNYAKAA AS EYEWITNESSES

Abstract

This article aims to bring a discussion related to eyewitness experiences in the works of two North American poets, Charles Simic and Yusef Komunyakaa, during war times. Simic's contact with the destruction of the Second World War serves as a background that inherently connects itself with his essays and poems. The traumatic experiences of devastation and violence remain as pivotal themes in the search for the "unimportant events" that constitute a history focused on the journey of the individual. Komunyakaa is linked to Simic by the horrifying circumstances of war but differentiated by decades in his experiences in the Vietnam War. As a soldier, his participation in the combat zone allows him to have an eyewitness perspective of the fragility of life.