Essay Questions

How do dreams contribute to Darwish’s poems?

Dreams, or rather the dream state, are integral to Darwish’s poems. Darwish views dreams as a purgatory state, during which our conscious and subconscious are able to communicate with each other. When we are in this dream state, Darwish argues, we are most free—free to express ourselves, free to tap into our deepest musings. He suggests that existence is a fluid state, during which we are permitted to seamlessly transition between reality and our deepest desires. In this way, Darwish uses dreams in his poems to expose our relationships with ourselves and with others. He suggests that dream states permit us to access our deepest desires and, in doing so, can strengthen our relationships with both ourselves and those around us.

Why does Darwish choose to make the narrator of “No More and No Less” a woman?

The narrator of this poem takes the form of a woman struggling to construct her identity in a world full of social norms and societal expectations. The woman feels pressure to conform to the expectations that those have imposed upon her; she is unsure how to navigate the nuances of her own identity while considering the influences of others. Darwish likely chose to represent this internal struggle of this narrator as a woman due to the fact that societal expectations for women are significantly more stringent than for men. Women are expected to be subordinate; to be mothers; to be selfless and caring; to be emotional and tender. The narrator struggles to establish her true identity, without the influence of these elements. Therefore, it is very likely that the narrator chose to write the narrator as a woman due to the fact that women have many more societal expectations placed upon and may struggle to parse through these expectations to establish an authentic identity. She does not wish to be characterized based upon society’s expected view of her, but rather upon the way she presents.

Why does the narrator of “Who Am I, Without Exile,” liken isolation to the loosened gravity of identity's land?

The narrator of this poem reflects upon the unique sense of peace and solace he finds during social exile. The narrator suggests that, during this isolation, the “gravity of identity’s land” is loosened and gradually released. The identity’s land he refers to is a metaphor for greater society. He suggests that, when we are surrounded by others, we are permanently grounded in our identity. The conventions of society force us to adopt a personality, an identity, a set of beliefs. In isolation, however, we are freed from the absolute nature of our identity and are no longer grounded in the expectations of society.