54:. The poem goes on to explores questions of identity, difference, and solitude, particularly from the lens of oppressed groups such as women, gender nonconforming people, lesbians/gays, Jewish people, and Black people. The central focus of the poem is the tension between the desire for independence and individuality and the longing for community and belonging. The poem is named for Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement, during which observant Jews engage in fasting, repentance, and self-examination.
76:, a city where she felt a lack of connection to Jewish ties. In "The Genesis of Yom Kippur 1984", the poem's 1987 companion essay, Rich outlined the key events during the 1980s that served as the impetus for the poem. The "young scholar shot at the university gates on a summer evening walk" referenced in the poem is
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