Veterans’ self-expression in poetry

Abstract

Research shows the positive effects of creative self-expression and, specifically, poetry therapy for Veterans, including Veterans experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder. Studies also state the need for more research in the area. This article suggests the benefit of research studying not only what Veterans say about their experiences with poetry but also what Veterans say in their poetry — and how they say it. The author analyzes a poem that takes as its topic what it means to express military experience in a poem. “Here, Bullet,” the title poem of Brian Turner’s collection of poetry about his time as an American infantry team leader in Iraq, features a speaker who creates the “here” of the poem as an alternative space to the “here” of the endangered body. This is a “here” that readers, including the re-reading poet, might visit, encountering difficult experiences within the confines of the poem that they can also leave. This article’s implications are that Veterans’ poetry, when treated as art, can tell people something about what poetry writing and reading offer Veterans. The fullest picture of what poetry means for and does for Veterans would include close analysis of the poetry itself.