“no board says it is
by my feet know
and my hands…”
As we move on in lines 15 and 16 we get the first impressions of the poet’s emotions. The lines are very bitter and show his hatred and anger towards the whites. He is furious for some reason and is about to explode as anger is building up inside him. Even though Apartheid has ended, hatred against the whites has not changed.
“and hot, white, inwards turning
anger of my eyes”
In the next stanza the poet talks about a new, posh cuisine. He tells us that a guard stands at the gatepost and it is a whites only inn. From this we can conclude that segregation still exists between blacks and whites. Whites still live in a better lifestyle. So even though the Apartheid era is over, nothing really has changed.
In addition, the word “inn” has a double meaning. Not only does it mean an inn for whites only but is also a pun and also means that the whites are coming into D.6 and are taking over it. This has still not changed as whites still rule over the blacks.
“whites only inn”
The structure of the next stanza is anomalous. The stanza consists of only two lines. If we look at the structure of the poem, all the stanzas are approximately the same length, except from this one. This makes these two lines stand out and has a lot of effect on the reader. From these two lines we can see that the poet is trying to express something.
“No sign says it is
but we know where we belong”
These two lines are actually referring to the whites only inn. The poet is trying to say that even though no sign says it’s a whites only inn, but the blacks know they are not permitted. It’s the internal feeling in them, which differentiates them. So maybe the place has changed physically, signs may be been taken out, but the blacks and their position of worth in the society has not changed as yet.
In the next stanza, the poet is trying to look inside the cuisine.
“I press my nose to the clear panes”
This line has two meanings to it. Not only does this show a childlike act and the reminiscence of his youth, but is also shows that he is an outsider. This is ironic as the whites are the actual outsiders and so like before, things still remain the same. The whites still live a better lifestyle, still taking over their land, their comfort and all their financial stability.
In the next stanza, we see a complete contrast to the previous one. The poet describes a low class, working man’s café. This makes us distinguish between their lifestyles and so the discrimination between them. Therefore segregation still exists, even though Apartheid is over. So basically, nothing much has changed for the blacks.
In the last and final stanza there is a change in tone from the poet. The tone of the poem so far has been depressing, nostalgic and angry. But now there is a sense of destruction.
The poet begins the stanza with:
“I back from the glass,
boy again”
This shows him backing from reality to how he was before during the Apartheid era. He was an outsider then and still remains as one.
The poet has a desire for weapons, like during Apartheid. He wants to destroy the reign of whites over the blacks so the desire for weapons and hatred towards the whites still do exist in blacks.
He wants to cause pain to the whites as to reflect to what they have caused for the blacks.
The poem then ends with: “Nothing’s Changed”. This shows us the poet’s conclusion. Even though the place has changed physically, apartheid is over, signs are taken out, people are free to go wherever they wish to- there is still segregation, discrimination, hatred and envy between whites and blacks.
In conclusion, his familiarity with the place, segregation between whites and blacks, meanness and envy of a child, desire for weapons and anger towards the whites still haven’t changed.
District Six may have changed in a physical sense, but his feelings towards the whites haven’t.
