Persimmons, a Light in the Darkness Persimmons

¶ … Persimmons," a Light in the Darkness "Persimmons" is a free verse poem written by Li-Young Lee that explores how persimmons as a symbol, both figurative and as a word, have impacted an unnamed narrator in the poem. The poem is told from a first person perspective and relies heavily on the memories invoked by the fruit. The poem does not follow a linear storyline, but rather jumps around as the narrator recounts different events, following a stream of consciousness type of narrative flow.

Through the persimmon, the narrator is able to recount past experiences and explore his personal identity. The poem begins with the narrator's recollection of how he was first introduced to the word persimmon, a fruit which he was previously familiar with due to his Chinese background. The memory appears to be a negative one as the narrator was punished by his sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Walker, for not knowing the difference between the words persimmon and precision.

Due to his inability to distinguish between the words, the narrator was slapped in the back of the head and forced to stand in a corner. This initial stanza introduces the theme of persimmons that will influence other stanzas in the poem. The second stanza of "Persimmons" provides a detailed description of how precision affects persimmons. The second stanza is filled with descriptors that help to identify when a persimmon is ready to be eaten.

The narrator describes ripened persimmons as being "soft and brown-spotted." Persimmons' ripeness can be further tested by sniffing the bottoms as the narrator states that "the sweet one will be fragrant." The narrator proceeds to describe how a persimmon should be eaten. The narrator describes precisely how a persimmon should be eaten; no utensils are necessary, but rather the fruit should be enjoyed slowly and thoroughly.

The care with which the narrator approaches eating a persimmon through a detailed ritual that appears to have sexual undertones that are explore in the following stanza. The process of eating a persimmon is simple, yet filled with vivid descriptors. The persimmon takes on human characteristics and is described as having skin, meat, and a heart. Furthermore, the approach to eating a persimmon is very sensual; the chewing, sucking, and swallowing of the fruit take on different connotations when paired with the following stanza.

In the third stanza, the narrator introduces Donna, a woman with whom he has a relationship with. Much like the persimmon, Donna is literally stripped of her outer covering, an invitation that insinuates that the narrator is given permission to consume her, as he would a persimmon. One again, the reader is introduced to the concept of language. In this instance, instead of trying to learn English, the narrator tries to teach his lover Chinese.

It is also at this point, when the narrator admits that he has forgotten how to say "dew" and "naked" in Chinese, it appears to indicate that this loss of memory for what he used to know and who he was shakes his confidence. As the narrator proceeds to make love to Donna, he remembers "to tell her/she is beautiful as the moon." By comparing Donna to the moon, the narrator shows his respect for her and her willingness to give herself to him.

It is important to note that in Chinese culture, the moon is a revered female entity often associated with yin; later in the poem, the narrator will compare persimmons to the sun, which is often associated with yang thus forming a complete entity. Perhaps the narrator sees himself as being comparable to the sun, thus being able to become a single, whole, and balanced person when he is with Donna.

The theme of language continues in the fourth stanza as the narrator further analyzes words that he often confused as a child. The narrator associates fight and fright and comments on how though each word has a different intrinsic meaning, the words complement each other and are often used in unison to describe how he feels. Fighting was a reaction being frightened and inversely the narrator was frightened while fighting.

There is no indication as to when the narrator felt frightened, nor when he was involved in fighting, but as he continues to associate words, such as wren and yarn, the narrator insinuates that these words are associated with his childhood. The narrator goes on to describe how his mother used to make wrens out of yarn; the narrator assumes that wrens are as soft as yarn as he can associate the softness only to the wrens that his mother has constructed out of yarn.

The fifth stanza is once again a memory of an event that occurred when the narrator was in sixth grade. The narrator notes the ignorance of Mrs. Walker, and the willingness of her students to believe that she is correct, as he observes her attempting to introduce the class to the persimmon. Though the narrator notices that the fruit that Mrs. Walker has brought to class is neither ripe nor sweet. Contrary to how the narrator was properly taught regarding persimmons, Mrs.

Walker does not ensure that the fruit is ripened, nor does she approach eating it with the same regard that the narrator does. Knowing that Mrs. Walker is wrong appears to give the narrator satisfaction, and while the children attempt to enjoy the fruit, he chooses to not participate in the activity. Moreover, he allows Mrs. Walker and the children to consume the unripened fruit and delights in their disgust. The following stanza shows a turn in the tone of the poem.

No longer does the narrator reflect on school, but rather turns his focus on how the persimmon has affected his personal life. When his mother tells the narrator that "every persimmon has a sun/inside, something golden, glowing" it appears as though Lee is associating the fruit, and consumption thereof, as a form of reaching enlightenment.

This theme is carried on in the following stanza when the narrator is in the cellar and finds two persimmons "forgotten and not yet ripe." By taking the fruit out of the darkness, he allows them to fulfill their destiny, becoming the "sun" that his mother once described the fruit as being.

His mother is not the only thing that reminds the narrator of the fruit's destiny, as a bird greets him and the fruit each morning singing "the sun, the sun." The following two stanzas is a stark contrast to the previous two stanza and their association with sun and light. The narrator's father is basked in darkness, losing his sight, and awaiting for the inevitable complete.