The poet Brathwaite also writes for those mistreated by people in power, in his protest poem “Limbo.” It is about slavery and its effects on a society. As the title suggests the poem is related to “Limbo,” but whether it means the place between heaven and hell, or the game/ dance Limbo is unclear.
Afrika’s motivation lay within his life experiences and influences, as did Brathwaite’s. The two poets had each experienced forms of power, yet both were able to express and convey the flaws of these authorities in different styles.
Today, “Limbo’s” content is unbelievable. However, by using this approach he helped people realise that slavery was a real issue. Afrika, in comparison, expressed his views, but in and odd style to add interest. He sort of mocks the white people’s ways. They both write, however, because there is some lie they want to expose, some fact to which they both want to draw attention.
As with “Nothing’s Changed,” “Limbo,” can be read on different levels. It is titled “Limbo,” drawing the readers’ attention to the exotic, cheerful dance aspect, yet we know it is not a game, as there is nothing fun about it. The reader, by being drawn in, has to look closer, exploring and interpreting the real intentions of Brathwaite’s writing. Brathwaite uses the dance to make serious moral points which are symbolic of certain human attitudes and ideas.
Afrika writes about the whole society around him, rather than a particular part of human nature, perhaps creating more of a particular retribution in his writing.
Afrika was lied to for the majority of his early life and experienced conflict at the hands of power, whereas Brathwaite generally had a more comfortable upbringing; as he didn’t actually experience first hand what he was writing about.
Brathwaite and Afrika both make strong protest about the abuse of power and how it can lead to awful things, and suggest the moral of human nature, that Utopia’s are not possible due to the flaws that will always be found and created by individuals.
Thje language in both poems is used to similar effect. In “Nothings Changed” lengthy description is used throughout, “seeding grasses thrust bearded seeds into trouser cuffs, cans, trodden on…” This is rare in any writing but Afrika continually uses it which gives a more vivid image. Brathwaite similarly applies description, but it is not as lengthy, “stick is the whip and the dark deck is slavery.” It has more of a structured beat, and the reader can imagine the event Brathwaite has described, but it is harder. Each line can mean a number of things. The idea of doing this teaches the reader to study other ideas and possibilities.
Afrika suggested that language had to try, as far as possible, to reflect the truth of an issue. In his writing style, thoughtless language and complex writing was avoided, and straight-forward wording is used. This technique was used in the hope of not misleading the reader and helped make the message as clear as possible.
Brathwaite didn’t do this with the same process. Instead he uses simple words in complex sentences to show multiple meanings. The main point that both these poems convey is the strong protest about issues in the writers’ lives.
Despite the very different contents there are many similarities between them. The poems were both very successful and were appreciated by a wide audience.