Wislawa Szymborska’s “Photograph from September 11”

Szymborska’s “Photograph from September 11” truly reads like a picture. Every sentence brings forward the face of fear and terror, the memory of despair and tragedy. Describing the poor souls jumping from the flaming building, Szymborska writes, “The photograph halted them in life/and now keeps them/ above the ground towards the earth” (lines 3-6). This recalls the shock and anxious anticipation I felt when watching the footage for the first time, the melancholy felt re-watching, knowing that these people have long passed, yet they plunge every time as for the first.


In the next passage these people are further described, “Each is still complete/with a particular face/ and blood well hidden” (Szymborska lines 7-9). Reading this tells me to remember the individual lives of the people who died that day. I believe it is important to remember this while looking through the photographs of the aftermath: The bloodstained streets, littered with debris and severed limbs. I have tried, and I really cannot imagine being put into their situation: Choosing whether to perish in a fiery abyss or frantically flying out of the windows before falling like Icarus. I have tremendous respect for all the lost souls that perished not only on September 11, put I respect and pity every innocent that is unjustly put to death before their time.


I have looked at more photographs, videos, files and articles about 9/11 than many others I know. I know many people who do not care to look at the horrific images taken that day, whether because they have a weak stomach, or simply because they are unconcerned with the matter. As Americans we cannot shut our eyes to horrible images. To know what needs to be done to make a change, you must be willing to look at the problem. We are fighting the longest war in United States history, and it doesn’t look like it will end anytime soon. As told by Devin Dwyer and Luis Martins, “According to the Pentagon, 1,000 service members have been killed in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan since combat operations began in the region nearly nine years ago. This includes 15 service members killed in Pakistan and one in Uzbekistan” (“http://www.icasualties.org/oef/”). According to IraqBodyCount.org, the number of civilian deaths from the combined wars we have been in is roughly 100,000 people. We went into this war based on revenge, but does our cause justify the costs? If we are not willing to really see all this death, then we are powerless to end it.


If you are easily upset, perhaps you should avoid this video, if you can take it though, please watch the whole thing. These brave men and women who fell or jumped to their deaths deserve the recognition and the remembrance.

Works Cited List

Szymborska, Wislawa. “Photograph from September 11.” Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. November 7, 2005. June 14 2010. Web. http://edwardbyrne.blogspot.com/2008/09/wislawa-szymborska-photograph-from.html



ICasualties: Operation Enduring Freedom: Afghanistan." ICasualties: Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom Casualties." Web. 16 June 2010. http://www.icasualties.org/oef/.