Mahmoud Darwish Speaks Truth of Palestine
I felt astonished after reading the poem, “I Come From There” by Mahmoud Darwish . I already knew about the whole situation of Palestinians losing their homeland and becoming prisoners to the Israelli soldiers. But reading it from someone words that experienced the crisis speaks to more truth. Media can twist and turn what is happening in other countries, and it is becoming a problem. After reading the poem, I realized it would be hard to understand without some background on Palestine’s situation.
I come from there and I have memories
Born as mortals are, I have a mother
And a house with many windows,
I have brothers, friends,
And a prison cell with a cold window.
Mahmoud Darwish starts of the poem stating that he comes from “there” which is referring to his homeland of Palestine. This is also the title of the poem which means it has significance to it. I think that it has to do with how his words are true as he actually experience living in Palestine. Listening to secondary sources including social media and the news which can easily twist the truth. Listening to a primary source which in this case is Mahmoud Darwish, can provide what the actual experience is like. This is the point I believe Mahmoud Darwish is trying to put together as this makes the title of the poem very strong. He then states that he has memories in Palestine, a house, friends, and a prison cell. The switch of scenery changed quickly when he started talking about the prison cell. It seemed that he was living a happy life with family and friends, but when he mentioned the prison cell, I immediately knew he was referring to be oppressed by the Israeli soldiers.
Mine is the wave, snatched by sea-gulls,
I have my own view,
And an extra blade of grass.
Mine is the moon at the far edge of the words,
And the bounty of birds,
And the immortal olive tree.
I walked this land before the swords
Turned its living body into a laden table.
Mahmoud Darwish compares sea gulls with the Israeli people as he says they snatched his “wave” which I think represents his homeland. He then goes on to say what else was on his homeland which includes birds, olive trees, and grass. But the last two lines above are very powerful in my opinion. He used to live in Palestine happily when there was no killing or fighting, which is what is meant when he says, “I walked this land before the swords”. Then the living body turned into a laden table. This means that Palestinian population has gone down, after the competion of land against the Israelis. I come from there. I render the sky unto her mother When the sky weeps for her mother. And I weep to make myself known
To a returning cloud.
I learnt all the words worthy of the court of blood
So that I could break the rule.
I learnt all the words and broke them up
To make a single word: Homeland…..
The last stanza shows how Mahmoud Darwish cries for his homeland, and he compares it to his mother. The last four lines shows his urge for the right of his homeland. He “learnt all the words worthy of the court of blood” which shows how badly he is trying to get his land back. He
is willing to break justice rules of it. Then he broke them up, and it made a single word of homeland which is his end goal. This poem as an entirety is so powerful as it came the mouth of a Palestinian which also represents the whole community. The picture below shows exactly what
Mahmoud Darwish was talking about. He was born in 1941 which proves that he experienced it all. He was born when Palestine had most of the land. But as he grew older and older, he lived through the loss of land. Which is where he lost his memories, family, and objects he included in
his poem. That is why this poem is so powerful. It came from a Palestinian who experienced it all.
Darwish, Mahmoud. “I Come From There.”
PoemHunter.com
, 13 Jan. 2003,
www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-come-from-there/.
Anna’s Photos – Maps & Media
,
www.annainthemiddleeast.com/photos/maps_media/2242/.