‘Iraq’ by Adnan Al-Sayegh is a poem written from the perspective of an Iraqi during the Iraq war. The poem can be interpreted as from the perspective of an Iraqi soldier or from the perspective of an innocent Iraqi civilian. Either way, this poem’s purpose is to convey the message about the danger that the country of Iraq is in because of the war. It talks about Iraq slowly ‘going’ away, meaning the war is withering away the country, it’s people and it’s heritage.
Great personification is used by the composer to show this. “Iraq that is going away” This statement implies that the Iraqi people have no choice but to run away from the threat of war. It also suggests that Iraq is slowly being destroyed as a result of the war. “Iraq that shivers/ Whenever a shadow passes.” This personification refers to Iraq being ‘scared’ of passing shadows, the Americans. The use of the word ‘shivers’ suggests that Iraq is ‘hiding’ from the war, in a cold, dark place.
The composer uses repetition of the words ‘Iraq that’. This may represent the counties comparison to a human being, again using personification.
“Iraq that we miss” This statement is referring to how the people of Iraq are ‘losing’ their country to the war. This is backed up by the next line, “Half of its history, songs and perfume”. This quotation explains that because of the war, half of Iraq’s history has been destroyed. Half of it’s ‘songs and perfume’, or it’s personality has been lost. “And the other half is tyrants.” This is the final line in the poem and is a strong metaphor. The composer is calling the American soldiers ‘tyrants’, meaning they are the enemy. The statement expressess that half of Iraq has been overrun by the American’s and suggests that if the war is not stopped, Iraq will eventually be metaphorically destroyed.
Great personification is used by the composer to show this. “Iraq that is going away” This statement implies that the Iraqi people have no choice but to run away from the threat of war. It also suggests that Iraq is slowly being destroyed as a result of the war. “Iraq that shivers/ Whenever a shadow passes.” This personification refers to Iraq being ‘scared’ of passing shadows, the Americans. The use of the word ‘shivers’ suggests that Iraq is ‘hiding’ from the war, in a cold, dark place.
The composer uses repetition of the words ‘Iraq that’. This may represent the counties comparison to a human being, again using personification.
“Iraq that we miss” This statement is referring to how the people of Iraq are ‘losing’ their country to the war. This is backed up by the next line, “Half of its history, songs and perfume”. This quotation explains that because of the war, half of Iraq’s history has been destroyed. Half of it’s ‘songs and perfume’, or it’s personality has been lost. “And the other half is tyrants.” This is the final line in the poem and is a strong metaphor. The composer is calling the American soldiers ‘tyrants’, meaning they are the enemy. The statement expressess that half of Iraq has been overrun by the American’s and suggests that if the war is not stopped, Iraq will eventually be metaphorically destroyed.