The Colonel.

"What you have heard is true."
One of the first things I noticed about this poem is its style. I love how Carolyn Forche writes in a blunt, factual, and believable way that is also telling, moving, and poignant. This poem is about a visit with a friend to the house of a colonel. The story is told in a direct way with short sentences. One of my favorite examples of this is when she writes, "There is no other way to say this." 


One method Forche uses to keep the flow of the poem going is to list things without using the word "and" before the last item. When I read these sentences, it felt different than it would have if they had more definite endings. It adds to the poem's direct style and made me want to keep reading. Here are some examples that show this style and also have meaning to add to the poem.

"There were daily papers, pet dogs, a pistol on the cushion beside him." It is interesting how she lists a pistol in the same breath in which she speaks of normal, even expected, things to have in a family--newspapers and dogs. This is telling of the tumultuous times of the Nazi rule. People had to be prepared to protect themselves. Who knows who that pistol would injure, when it would be needed, or who it had already hurt?

"We had dinner, rack of lamb, good wine, a gold bell was on the table for calling the maid." Again, the last item in the list is less related to the previous ones. But this one I am more confused about. Was it common to have maids during WWII? What's the significance of mentioning this?

As in the example above, some aspects of this poem that have left me confused or unsure. The cop show on TV is in English, but a commercial comes on in Spanish. What, if anything, does that have to do with human rights?


"The moon swung bare on its black cord over the house."
I love Forche's imagery. This sentence makes me feel like it is nighttime. The dark sky is suspending the bright moon, giving a cool glow to the otherwise black night. 


"The parrot said hello on the terrace."
This line made me laugh. I can just imagine the parrot talking during the middle of an uncomfortable political conversation at the house of a colonel who has a gun just laying around.


I think the purpose of the poem starts emerge at this point. The colonel returns with a bag and dumps its contents onto the table. It is full of dried human ears. I am still trying to figure out why he puts one into water, making it look "alive" again. It's disturbing. It's cruel. It's inhumane. I might have gotten sick if I had to see it in person. But Forche reveals the Colonel's thoughts: "As for the rights of anyone, tell your people they can go f*** themselves." So many possibilities are running through my head. Has he done this to those people? Is he just acknowledging that people's rights are not always accepted and respected? Has he given up on believing people really have rights? After the colonel carelessly brushed the ears to the floor, he sarcastically said, "Something for your poetry, no?" Is he saying it's not worth talking about? Is he implying poetry is not a valid method of discussing issues, revealing truths?


"Some of the ears on the floor caught this scrap of his voice. Some of the ears on the floor were pressed to the ground."
This was the most awakening part of the poem for me. Some of the ears landed upright, others landed facing the floor. It is as if Forche is writing for those ears, for the people who they once belonged to. She is writing to reveal what they heard but couldn't--didn't get the chance--to share. She is hearing what they hear, what they don't want to hear, and is going to make people aware of it.