Perhaps the most important image in the poem is that of the “glass” which shuts out the speaker in the poem. It is a symbol of the divisions of colour and class; often the same thing in South Africa. As he backs away from it at the end of the poem, Afrika sees himself as a “boy again”, who has left the imprint of his “small, mean mouth” on the glass. He wants “a stone, a bomb” to break the glass - he may wish literally to break the window of this inn, but this is clearly meant in a symbolic sense. He wants to break down the system, which separates white and black, rich and poor, in South Africa.
The title of the poem suggests not just that things have not changed, but a disappointment that an expected change has not happened. The poem uses the technique of contrast to explore the theme of inequality. It has a clear structure of eight-line stanzas. The lines are short, of varying length, but usually with two stressed syllables. The poet assumes that the reader knows South Africa, referring to places, plants and local food. The poem is obviously about the unfairness of a country where “Nothing's changed”. But this protest could also apply to other countries where those in power resist progress and deny justice to the common people.
The poet thinks that the alleged change is a pathetic attempt to beat back some of the racism that had been around under the apartheid. He thinks that there may as well have been no political change as society has not followed the trend, merely carried on oblivious.
From this poem I have learned that the apartheid was a huge and radical infringement of basic human rights upon the black population of South Africa. I have learned that a small proportion of the white community tried to do much about the terrible regime in which they lived. Perhaps the most horrific thing that I have come across, is the fact that even after the apartheid was lifted, the same hatreds remained and it was as if nothing had changes, as was suggested in this poem.
Island man- Grace Nichols
The subtitle really explains this simple poem - it tells of a man from the Caribbean, who lives in London but always thinks of his home.
The poem opens with daybreak, as the island man seems to hear the sound of surf - and perhaps to imagine he sees it, since we are told the colour. This is followed by simple images of the fishermen putting their boats out, the sun climbing in the sky and the emerald green island.
The island man always returns to the island, in his mind, but in thinking of it he must “always” come “back” literally to his immediate surroundings - hearing the traffic on London's North Circular Road.
Grace Nichols ends the poem with the image of coming up out of the sea - but the reality is the bed, and the waves are only the folds of a “crumpled pillow”. The last line of the poem is presented as the harsh reality, “Another day in London.”
From this poem I have learned that people don’t immigrate to England because they want to, they do it because they have to. I know this because the character obviously feels extremely home sick and loves his native land. I can also tell that life on his island contrasts vastly with that of London, quite a culture shock!
Imtiaz Dharker - Blessing
This poem is about water in a hot country, where the supply is inadequate. The poet sees water as a gift from a god. When a pipe bursts, the flood that follows is not just like a miracle but is one.
The opening lines of the poem compare human skin to a seedpod, drying out till it cracks. This is because there is “never enough water”. Dharker asks the reader to imagine it dripping slowly into a cup. When the “municipal pipe,” the main pipe that supplies a town bursts, it is seen as unexpected good luck, or a “sudden rush of fortune” and everyone rushes to help themselves. The end of the poem reminds us of the sun, which causes skin to crack “like a pod” - today's blessing is tomorrow's drought.
The poem has a single central metaphor - the giving of water as a blessing from a “kindly god”. The religious metaphor is repeated, as the bursting of the pipe becomes a “rush of fortune”, and the people who come to claim the water are described as “congregation” which means people gathering for worship.
We have a clear sense of the writer's world - in her culture water is valued, as life depends upon the supply. This is a culture in which belief in a kindly god is seen as essential. She suggests a vague and general religious belief, or superstition. The poem ends with a picture of children; naked and screaming. The sense of their beauty “highlights polished to perfection” is balanced by the idea of their fragility, as the “blessing sings over their small bones”.
From this poem I have learned that in other cultures basic resources, which we in the west take for granted are desperately needed. They rely solely on their gods to deliver the much-needed substances. If they do not receive these blessings then they will perish.
From this cluster of poems I have learned so much about other people and other cultures, how they live, thrive and survive, I have shared the joys and miseries of men from South Africa to children of the Indian Sub-Continent. I have seen that to write great English you don’t necessarily have to have to be English, to have ever lived in England, or indeed to ever have been associated with the country, you simply need inspiration.
