How does the poet bear witness to tragedy or more difficult aspects of human life? E.g. in Amichai’s case, the most obvious example is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; in Walcott’s, it’s the long aftermath of imperialism, colonialism, and racism on the Caribbean.
In Yehuda Amichai’s poems, Amichai highlights his journey through difficult experiences faced. Amichai focuses on the theme of nostalgia and losing loved ones. In his poems, “The School Where I Studied” and “Try to Remember Some Details”, Amichai focuses on the past and theme of nostalgia by making us experience his past through vivid descriptions such as “Try to remember some details. Remember the clothing of the one you love” and “I’m still studying it, I’ll go on studying till the day I die. I stood near the school building and looked in. This is the room where we sat and learned. ” These poems focused on the theme of nostalgia but aimed at reminding us that the past is the past and we should continue on with our lives to create new memories. Also in his poem, “What Kind of a Person Are You”, Amichai says the phrase “Arrows do not direct me. I conduct My business carefully and quietly Like a long will that began to be written The moment I was born” which aims to send a message that life shouldn’t be followed with strict directions, you should follow your own path and create your own trail.