Kwame Dawes explores his immigrant and poet identity through his new collection, Nebraska, delving into the vast emptiness of middle America. Originally from Ghana and mostly raised in Jamaica, Dawes moved to Nebraska in 2013. His portrayal of middle America in this collection avoids sentimentality, portraying the landscape as broad and desolate, erasing individual possibilities and identities.
In poems like “The Midwestern Sky,” Dawes expresses his alienation and bewilderment amidst the uninterpretable sky of this environment:
Not all skies are readable. I am an alien
in this wide-open country, and the sky’s
inscrutable dialect leaves me bewildered
He is also intrigued by the enigmatic wisdom present in the faces of the people he encounters:
[ … ]—in their faces one knows
that the wisdom is there—the knowledge
of the sky’s language—they have
read it with only a hint of spirit
In his Nebraskan setting, Dawes brings a new perspective to his social and poetic consciousness, incorporating the landscape of rural spaces, agrarian communities, and Protestantism. He infuses his writing with mysticism by reinterpreting Protestant symbols and icons, creating a fusion of religious and ritual elements as seen in “How I Became an Apostle”:
Not that I have my thorn in the flesh,
I can write epistles, holy writs. It’s winter.
I limp out just after the delicate chaos
of flurries covers the driveway and I shovel.
This is a ritual of sin: after clearing a long
path behind me the pox of snow returns.
Drawing parallels between his immigrant experience and the historical displacement of Native peoples and pioneers in Nebraska, Dawes explores the complexities of belonging and disconnection in “The Poor Man’s Sacrifice” and other poems. He references Nebraskan literary figures to ground his work in the local literary tradition, adding authenticity to his exploration of Nebraskan history and culture.
However, Dawes challenges stereotypical portrayals of midwestern poets and embraces his unique perspective and voice. He resists conforming to conventional expectations, opting to tell stories that reflect his individuality rather than fit a prescribed mold. By diverging from the traditional image of a midwestern poet, Dawes opens doors for diverse voices to reshape and expand the literary tradition, particularly for immigrant writers.
Having transitioned from a stranger to a valued newcomer in the Nebraskan landscape, Dawes paves the way for new voices to be embraced and celebrated.
