Red Kubbeh

Notes

The poem begins with an allusion to William Carlos Williams’ famous poem (“so much depends / upon // a red wheel / barrow // glazed with rain / water // beside the white / chickens”). Dori-Carlier’s witty reworking of this in the opening stanza sets up the context for a deep investigation of family, time and exile through a simple meal: a rich beetroot soup.

Note: Dar-il-Yahud (Arabic: "The Jews' court"): One of the two Jewish neighbourhoods in Baghdad.

Edward Doegar