POEMS OF QUAZI JOHIRUL ISLAM: A RARE EVALUATION OF POET AL MAHMUD, AN ANALYSIS BY NURUL HOQUE
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BY NURUL HOQUE POEMS OF QUAZI JOHIRUL ISLAM : A RARE EVALUATION OF POET AL MAHMUD, AN ANALYSIS
Quazi Johirul Islam’s poetry is marked by a deep engagement with existential questions, societal critique, and reflections on freedom and empowerment. His poems, “The Crack,” “Life Means Flight,” and “Rabeya Has Learned to Fly,” explore themes of destruction, transcendence, and the role of women in challenging traditional norms. Below is a wide analysis of these three poems:
“The Crack” portrays an apocalyptic vision of an unstoppable force that silently destroys everything in its path. The poem starts with a mysterious rupture: “No thunder rolls, no winds to chase, / where’s the storm’s embrace?” The absence of expected signs of a storm underscores the unpredictability of the destruction. The “crack” is an enigmatic entity, moving through fields and landscapes, silently devouring all that stands in its way.
Johirul Islam uses this crack as a metaphor for devastation, both natural and possibly man-made. The imagery of fields of crops, rice, and cattle being swallowed evokes a deep connection to rural life and the fragility of human existence when faced with forces beyond control. The crack represents an uncontrollable force that no one seems to fully comprehend, a rupture that could symbolize political unrest, environmental degradation, or existential destruction.
The poem’s form mirrors the relentless nature of the crack—it moves without pause, consuming everything, leaving the reader with an unsettling feeling of helplessness. The imagery of loss—fish ponds disappearing, fields vanishing, and cattle gone—suggests a deep metaphorical implication for the disappearance of livelihoods, cultures, and traditional ways of life in the face of overwhelming forces, whether they be colonialism, war, or the impacts of modernity.
In stark contrast to “The Crack,” “Life Means Flight” offers a hopeful vision of life’s transcendence over death. The poem opens with a question: “What does death take away?” It immediately confronts the fear and dismay surrounding mortality. Islam emphasizes that life, in its essence, is not tied to the physical body, which is merely a “cage of bones.” The body will decay, but life continues in a more expansive, liberated form.
The central metaphor of the poem is that life is like a bird, confined within a cage, waiting for the moment of flight. When death arrives, the bird (life) is freed: “Life means flight, vast and blue.” This metaphor connects life with the limitless potential of flight, suggesting a spiritual or existential freedom that transcends physical limitations. Death is not seen as an end but as a release from the cage of the body.
The poem’s tone is philosophical and uplifting, as it challenges common misconceptions about life and death. The notion that life lingers in the footprints of our journey implies that our existence is more than just the physical—our actions, experiences, and essence continue to live on even after death. This idea aligns with spiritual or existential philosophies that view life as eternal and transformative.
Prepared: Angela Kosta Executive Director of MIRIADE Magazine, Academic, journalist, writer, poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, translator, promoter
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“Rabeya Has Learned to Fly” is a powerful feminist poem that centers on a young girl, Rabeya, who defies the constraints placed upon her by a patriarchal society. The poem begins with Rabeya’s whispered dream to her mother: “I’ll soar in the sky, become a bird in the distant blue.” This act of dreaming of flight immediately establishes Rabeya’s desire for freedom and transcendence. However, her father’s reaction—“I’ll clip your wings, cage you tight”—symbolizes the societal forces that attempt to limit women’s aspirations.
The father’s anger is emblematic of a larger societal fear of women’s empowerment, and his desire to control Rabeya reflects the oppressive structures that seek to subdue women’s voices and dreams. Yet, the poem celebrates Rabeya’s determination and success as she escapes the confines of her small town, moving from one educational institution to another, until she finally achieves the ultimate symbol of freedom: sitting in the cockpit of an airplane.
The poem connects Rabeya’s journey to that of real-life figures like Alyssa, a woman destined to fly to Mars, emphasizing the global nature of the struggle for women’s rights and the immense potential that women have when given the freedom to pursue their dreams. The imagery of flight serves as both a literal and metaphorical representation of women breaking free from societal expectations and soaring to new heights.
Themes and Wider Analysis
Across these poems, Quazi Johirul Islam returns to themes of freedom, destruction, and transformation. “The Crack” presents an unsettling vision of a world being torn apart, possibly symbolizing the societal or environmental forces that threaten to dismantle livelihoods. “Life Means Flight” takes a more philosophical approach, examining the nature of existence and suggesting that life is not confined to the body but exists in a vast, boundless form after death.
“Rabeya Has Learned to Fly” ties these existential and societal themes together by focusing on a more personal and feminist struggle. Rabeya’s defiance against her father’s control and her subsequent success symbolize the broader fight for women’s freedom and the breaking of patriarchal chains. Her flight mirrors the existential freedom discussed in “Life Means Flight”—a freedom not just from death, but from societal restrictions as well.
A Rare Evaluation of Poet Al Mahmud, an analysis
Legendary poet Al Mahmud offers deep admiration for Quazi Johirul Islam's poetic spirit, especially in light of his professional life abroad. Mahmud reflects on the challenges poets face when they are compelled to live away from their homeland for work, but he values how Johir continuously seeks to connect with his roots through his writing. Despite being an expatriate, Islam's efforts to weave his experiences abroad into his poetry are considered a fortune for modern Bengali literature, offering fresh perspectives and themes not found in local works.
Mahmud is particularly fascinated by how Quazi Johirul Islam brings the landscapes, people, and social realities of the countries where he resides into his poems, without relying on borrowed or derivative themes. His strength, according to Al Mahmud, lies in his desire to shape the Bengali language to describe unfamiliar environments and experiences. This connection between language and the new worlds he encounters abroad makes his poetry stand out. In fact, Mahmud acknowledges that Johirul Islam’s ever-wandering life gives him a unique edge in writing poetry that many younger poets back home cannot replicate, as they are not exposed to the same global experiences.
Al Mahmud also emphasizes that Quazi Johirul Islam, who served as an international UN officer in Ivory Coast, making a concerted effort to understand and connect with the people and nature of West Africa, an important aspect of his poetry. His senior poet’s hope is that Johirul Islam’s work will enrich modern Bengali poetry, bringing in new perspectives and adding diversity to the evolving literary scene.
However, Mahmud expresses a nuanced thought, that the literary movements in Bangladesh and West Bengal are constantly evolving. Poet Mahmud hopes that Quazi Johirul Islam stays attuned to these changes to maintain harmony between his international experiences and the spontaneous cycles of poetry emerging in Dhaka and Kolkata. While there is a potential risk that his wandering lifestyle could disconnect him from these movements, Mahmud ultimately trusts in Johir’s ability to synthesize his experiences abroad with the changing directions of Bengali poetry.
Conclusion
Johirul Islam’s poetry reveals a deep engagement with both societal and existential issues. Whether addressing the destructive forces that tear through the world in “The Crack,” the transcendent nature of life in “Life Means Flight,” or the feminist journey of emancipation in “Rabeya Has Learned to Fly,” his work consistently points toward a deeper understanding of human existence. Themes of destruction and renewal, confinement and freedom, run through all three poems, offering readers a multifaceted exploration of life’s challenges and triumphs.
In essence, Al Mahmud sees Quazi Johirul Islam as a significant figure in the expatriate poet community, capable of bringing global insights to Bengali poetry. He believes that Islam’s poetry, with its international scope, has the potential to bring new glory to the tradition, while also encouraging him to stay connected with the dynamic literary movements back home.
Academic, journalist, writer, poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, translator, promoter
