Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Yusef Komunyakaa’s “We Never Know” captures the surreal and haunting experience of war, using the brief encounter with a fallen enemy soldier to explore themes of humanity, love, and the absurdity of violence. The poem’s minimalistic structure and stark imagery juxtapose the brutality of combat with the intimate, almost tender moment that follows, creating a powerful meditation on the complexities of human connection in the context of destruction.

The poem opens with a striking image of the soldier swaying “with tall grass for a moment, like he was swaying with a woman.” This simile humanizes the fallen figure, transforming him from an enemy combatant into a person engaged in a fleeting dance with nature. The imagery is both graceful and eerie, as the reader is reminded that this movement is not voluntary but the result of his death. The metaphor blurs the boundaries between life and death, suggesting a continuity in the soldier’s presence as he becomes part of the natural world.

Komunyakaa’s narrative perspective adds to the complexity of the scene. The speaker recounts the moment with detachment yet reveals a profound emotional response as he approaches the body. The description of “a blue halo of flies” conveys both the immediacy of death and the transformation of the soldier’s body into part of the ecosystem. This detail, while macabre, underscores the inevitability of mortality and the indiscriminate nature of war.

The pivotal moment of the poem occurs when the speaker retrieves “the crumbled photograph” from the dead man’s fingers. This photograph, a fragment of the soldier’s personal life, becomes a powerful symbol of the humanity that persists even in death. The speaker’s reaction—“There’s no other way to say this: I fell in love”—is startling and deeply poignant. This sudden declaration of love suggests an overwhelming recognition of shared humanity, as the photograph collapses the distance between enemy and observer. The act of holding the photograph bridges the chasm created by war, transforming the soldier from an abstract figure into someone with a life, relationships, and emotions.

The poem’s setting—a battlefield intermittently interrupted by mortar fire and the sound of helicopters—serves as a backdrop to the intimate moment. The contrast between the distant violence and the speaker’s personal reflection highlights the dissonance between the collective destruction of war and the individual lives it consumes. The speaker’s small, human gesture of sliding the wallet back into the soldier’s pocket and turning him over “so he wouldn’t be kissing the ground” reflects an instinctive act of dignity and respect, even in the midst of chaos.

Komunyakaa’s choice of language and tone is deliberate and restrained, allowing the emotional weight of the scene to emerge organically. The phrase “kissing the ground” is both literal and metaphorical, evoking the soldier’s final surrender to the earth while suggesting an intimacy that contrasts with the violence of his death. The understated narrative voice amplifies the poem’s impact, as the reader is invited to witness and interpret the scene without overt authorial commentary.

“We Never Know” ultimately interrogates the dehumanizing effects of war by reclaiming the humanity of the fallen soldier. Through the speaker’s act of empathy, Komunyakaa challenges the reader to consider the individuality and interconnectedness that persist even amidst conflict. The poem’s exploration of love and dignity in the face of death serves as a powerful reminder of the shared humanity that war seeks to obscure. It is this tension—between destruction and compassion, anonymity and recognition—that gives the poem its enduring resonance.

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