The Angel of History (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Carolyn Forche
- First Published: 1988
- Type of Work: Meditation
- Genres: Poetry, Lyric sequence, Meditation
- Subjects: History, Europe or Europeans, 1940’s, World War II, Jews or Jewish life, War, Death or dying, Holocaust, Jewish, Israel or Israelis, Judaism, Nuclear warfare or weapons, Middle East, Genocide
The Poem
Many of the eighteen sections of “The Angel of History” recount recollections of World War II, particularly horrors of persecution, dislocation, and loss. The memories belong primarily to a war victim named Ellie, a deported Jew whom the speaker befriended and has known for a number of years. Ellie is the poem’s magnetic center, attracting a variety of associations, some of which are clarified in notes. While the poem does not proceed chronologically, images and repeated phrases link the sections, some analytical, others narrative.
Indeed, the mental and...
[The entire page is 1660 words long]
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