Textual Analysis - Essay Example

Besides, the imagery and open form provides the reader with opportunity to get satire intended by the poet and the interpretation thereof. The poem’s assumptions are that, in the contemporary world, brutality and violence constitute the order of the day and leaders, and the people associated to them, are immune from the adverse effects of the political oppression and riots. In contravention, the UAE culture encourages general well-being and harmony amongst the citizens. My sentiments are that the poem is contradictory to the expectations and morals of the modern society.

People should coexist and, through the leaders, solve the problems that they encounter. The oppression that the Colonel conducts on the citizens of El Salvador is a matter that should be sternly condemned. In the UAE culture, leaders are agents of empowering the citizens to air their voices and views on matters of concern. Additionally, being from the UAE, the poet’s use of cliché words and symbolism can be interpreted differently because of the disparities involved in the two cultures. Arabic and English have trivial similarities and, as much as people from the U.S. can correctly interpret the various textual strategies used by the poet, it is likely for me to have a different interpretation.

Even so, Forche presents the poem in a way that overcomes the cultural disparities. The presentation of the calmness that existed on the Colonel’s house satirizes the political situation encountered in El Salvador. At the beginning of the poem, Forche uses poetic language to depict the homey and domestic nature the colonel’s family was going about their daily lives. She narrates that, “What you have heard is true. I was in his house. His wife carried a tray of coffee and sugar. His daughter filed her nails; his son went out for the night” (Forché 1).

The family is