What Do I Remember Of The Evacuation Poem Analysis
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What do I remember of the evacuation? By Joe Kogawa
Heroism
Similarly, Kogawa presents heroism in the evacuation of Japanese Canadians residing in Canada, after the bombing of Pearl Harbour. In the eyes of the poet, the act of heroism occurred during “… I remember how careful my parents were/Not to bruise her with bitterness…” The display of affection and protection has been presented by the use of metaphor by their parents in the evacuation. The parents wanted to protect their children from any racial discrimination. The phrase, “Gulliver of Gulliver’s Travels scanning the horizon/and when I told my mother she believed it too,” displays the degree to which the mother will go to ensure that her child’s world is still full of make believe. The allusion imagines the world the young girl lives in making her world complete with the use of stories making…show more content… Kogawa expresses the power the Canadian government had evacuating the residents. In the line “…abandon everything, leaving pets/and a possession at gunpoint…” shows the use of negative imagery in “…possessions at gunpoint…” as it makes it realistic to visualise the forceful evacuation. These images reflect the fear the Japanese people had during the evacuation making them powerless when they abandoned everything in fear of being shot. Moreover, the simile, “…people herded into the Hasting Park like cattle…” has been presented to highlight the treatment the Japanese were experiencing. The simile compares the cattle with the Japanese Canadian, which is disrespectful and inhuman. This also recognizes that innocent Japanese were evacuated with power by the government. Simile and negative imagery used by the poet helps the reader visualize the use of power on the Japanese residents who evacuated through