Focus poem: “Theme for English B”

Summary: The instructor tells the speaker to go home and write a page; this page
should come from himself and be true. The speaker wonders if it is that simple. He
begins with autobiographical details that he is “twenty-two”, “colored,” and born and
schooled in Winston-Salem, Durham, and currently attends college in Harlem. He
writes that he is the “only colored” student in his class. He walks down a hill into
Harlem, crossing streets before arriving at the Harlem branch of the Y. He takes the
elevator up to his room, which is where he is writing this page.
The speaker writes that at his young age, it is hard to know what is true for “you or
me.” He believes that the truth is what he hears, feels and sees in Harlem – “hear you,
hear me – we two – you, me, talk on this page.” He hears New York. He likes to eat,
drink, sleep, be in love, work, read, learn, and understand life. He likes receiving pipes
and records (Bessie Smith, Bach or Bop) as Christmas presents. Just because he is
colored does not mean he does not like the same things that people of other races like.
He wonders if his page will be “colored” because it is his and he is not white.
[Gradesaver]

The title: “Theme for English B” – It alludes to the task to be done.

Annotations:
See: https://prezi.com/mz-nekeakwab/langston-hughes-theme-for-english-b-analysis/

Structure/Style and form:

The poem is told from a first person perspective.
Written in free verse
Stream of Consciousness:
“Theme for English B” is written in a stream-of-consciousness style, a narrative
technique meant to mirror the passage of thoughts through the mind. Hughes uses this
technique to reflect the speaker’s train of thought as he writes his paper. Throughout
the poem, the speaker moves from describing his past to his present journey to class
each day to the activities and interests that defines him. This free-writing style
eventually leads him to address the similarities and differences between him and his
teacher and open communication about their differing views of “truth.”
“Theme for English B” is a lyric poem, which means that it is fairly brief, that it contains
the thoughts of one speaker who speaks in the first person throughout the poem, and,
rather than relying on action and plot to convey its point as a narrative poem would do,
it largely reflects on the speaker’s experiences and feelings about those experiences.

Rhyme and rhythm: “Theme for English B” is certainly a “sharp and impudent
interjection” in the collection [Montage of a Dream Deferred], if only because it adopts a
voice not marked by an African-American folk vernacular. Its rhythms are fairly
straightforward; it sounds like a letter someone might write, or an account you might
receive from a friend over dinner. But despite this apparently simple exterior, the poem
does use rhyme and rhythm in interesting ways in order to stress some of its central
points.

In the first stanza, Hughes’ speaker quotes the instructor’s directions for this
assignment. Lines 2 through 5 embody that quote and each of these lines consist of a
basic iambic pattern—one unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. “Home”
and “write” are stressed in line 2, “page” and “-night” in line 3, “let,” “page,” “out,”
and “you” in line 4, and, save for the single stress of “Then” at the beginning of the line,
“will” and “true” in line 5. However, after this fairly reliable rhythmic opening, Hughes
sheds this pattern and follows no strict form whatsoever for the rest of the poem, until
the final line when he returns—ironically, given what he’s illustrated within the piece—
to the nursery rhyme-sounding pattern with which he began: “This is my page for
English B,” he concludes, stressing “is,” “page,” the first syllable of “English,” and “B.”
This format alone signifies the complexities the speaker will address within the piece,
but of which the professor appears unaware. The rhythms’ complexities mirror those of
the subjects covered.
Hughes uses internal rhyme in a similar way here. In stanza 3, lines 16 through 20, the
student explores the interconnectedness of his sensual experiences (out of which he
argues his identity is in part composed) with the things that spur those experiences, all
of which indicate how layered his identity must be. Hughes underscores this idea by
internally rhyming many of these words—“you,” “me,” “two,” “we,” “too,” and
“who.”

The rhymes mix these words up until it becomes difficult to clearly separate them, an
effect Hughes also creates by employing tricky repetition. “Harlem, I hear you: / hear
you, hear me—we two—you, me talk on this page. / (I hear New York, too.) Me—
who?” the student finally asks, interweaving these pronouns to the point that no one
can be sure to whom—or what—they refer; this is precisely the point Hughes seems to
be trying to make elsewhere in the poem. By rhyming these key pronouns—and doing
so very simply—Hughes indicates their inseparability on the level of sound. All of these

■ the Harlem Renaissance." Established in 1901, the Harlem YMCA has remained a
cultural steward of Northern Manhattan and continues to serve the area's
multicultural neighbourhoods and communities with innovative programs and
services that meet the unique needs of the individuals and families that call
Harlem home).

1. Metaphor: “and let the page come out of you”

2. Repetition: “…a part of you…/a part of me…/a part of you…/a part of

me…”

3. Anaphora: the repetition of “I” throughout the poem.

 4. Alliteration: “Bessie, Bop, Bach”

5. Apostrophe: “but it will be a part of you, instructor.”

6. Enjambment: “hear you, hear me –we two-you, me…”

Tone: Contemplative/concerned.

Mood: Reflective

“Sonnet 18”
Summary

The speaker begins by asking whether he should or will compare "thee" to a summer
day. He says that his beloved is more lovely and more even-tempered. He then runs
off a list of reasons why summer isn’t all that great: winds shake the buds that
emerged in Spring, summer ends too quickly, and the sun can get too hot or be
obscured by clouds.

He goes on, saying that everything beautiful eventually fades by chance or by

nature’s inevitable changes. Coming back to the beloved, though, he argues that his
or her summer (or happy, beautiful years) won’t go away, nor will his or her beauty
fade away. Moreover, death will never be able to take the beloved, since the beloved
exists in eternal lines (meaning poetry). The speaker concludes that as long as
humans exist and can see (so as to read), the poem he’s writing will live on, allowing
the beloved to keep living as well.

Focus poem: “South”

Summary: The poem “South” by Kamau Brathwaite is a nostalgic poem that explores

mundane themes such as the longing for home, the idealization of childhood dreams

and the dislocation of people due to oppression and social unrest. The speaker, in a

nostalgic tone, speaks about the pride, joy and enchantment about his birth place.

Throughout the poem, the speaker reminisces about the islands, its beaches and the

lovely scenery – treasures often taken for granted by the island’s inhabitants. Soon
after migrating ‘North,’ the speaker finds it unbearable and therefore decides to

return to the south, where his childhood memories act as comforting stones.

The title: The title of the poem, “South”, refers to the southern hemisphere, which
includes the Caribbean islands, South America and the southern states of the United
States of America and of Africa, all of which are associated with the racial oppression
of black people.

Annotation:
In the first stanza the persona uses the phrase “recapture the islands” to show that
he felt that the island has been lost or taken, he does no “rediscover” but recaptures it
showing that he has no intention of leaving again. There is a lot of alliteration in the
poem that is used to describe the persona’s emotions. There is “bright beaches: blue
mist from the ocean” and “sound of the sea” which shows how comfortable and
inviting the island is to the persona. The sight and sound experienced is calming and
rekindles memories. The connection to the island is further highlighted by
personifying it as a mother that would have “life heaved and breathed in me”. By
giving the island the quality of motherhood/parenthood, it shows that the persona
had a connection to the land, feels at home there, feels comfort there and owes it for
giving him life. 

In the second stanza, the alliterations are used to show how unwelcoming the
“north” is. “Sojourned in stoniest cities” shows how the cities are made of stone and
not filled with green spaces like the island. The use of the word sojourned suggests
that the persona only intends to stay there temporarily. “Sharp, slanting sleet” gives
the impression that it is cold and uncomfortable. And “crossed countless saltless
savannas” gives the impression that the ‘north’ is lacking the feeling of home and
relaxation for the persona. This is the contrast the persona uses comparing the
unfriendliness of the ‘north’ to the warmth of the ‘south’. In this stanza the persona
begins to make judgements about the river and its water as compared to the sea and
its water. The river is associated with oppression and bitterness in the phrase “tepid
taste”. The ‘north’ is known for its large rivers and it has impacted the culture of
those countries, e.g. the United States and Canada. The persona criticises the mind-
set of these people who work continuously just like the river flows but in many cases
without a clear goal to achieve. In the ‘south’, the people are looked at as being laid
back but in reality they enjoy life more. 

In the third stanza the river’s length, that the persona cannot truly see and know, is
seen as a negative thing because if one does not see where he is going all the time as
in a river he may end up wasting time and effort going the wrong way and  “our
striving will founder on that”. This is unlike the open sea where a destination is seen
more clearly and one feels that progress is being made when one goes towards it. The
dislike for this symbol of the ‘north’ stems from  how it has replaced the former
European coloniser in the ‘south’, the Caribbean , Central American and South
America.  

 In the fourth stanza, nature is personified as a person welcoming the persona back
to the island. The author personifies the small sea urchins. “Small urchins combing
the beaches look up from their traps to salute us: they remember us just as we left
them.” The tiny sea creatures seem to be as happy to see the travellers returning to
their native shores. It is as if time has stood still since the persona has left and
everything remains untouched. He cannot hide his excitement: “there is the thatch of
the fishermen's houses, the path made of pebbles, and look! Small urchins combing
the beaches”

In the fifth stanza the persona is greeted by a fisherman who most likely remembers
him. It is a new beginning now for the persona as he is finally where he belongs and
can regain a life lost and “fly into limitless morning before us.”

Structure and form:

The poem is told from a first person perspective.
Written in free verse

Major themes to be explored: longing for home, the idealization of one’s home, the
dislocation of people due to oppression and social unrest, nature…

Rhythm: While there is no rhythm, in many places a dactylic rhythm (-vv) surges up
as if we are hearing the rolling of the sea as is heard in the lines “passing us toiling,
waiting and watching……into the limitless morning before us.”

Major Poetic Devices:

1. Alliteration: The stanzas do not carry a set rhyme scheme or a regular rhythm,
but the frequent use of alliteration gives a lyricism to the lines: bright beaches,
sound of the sea, stoniest cities, sharp slanting sleet, tepid taste

2. Symbolism: The River symbolizes progress and purpose; the ocean

symbolizes the timeless completeness. The starfish in the pool is something
like a mandala- a shape suggesting perfection and wholeness.
3. Metaphor: The seagulls flying off into the morning sky are carried on white
sails. The imagery compares gulls with sailing ships. The effect is to suggest
that the limitless morning of possibilities available to the island dwellers is of a
different nature to the potential and possibilities available to the island
dwellers is of a different nature to the potential and potential and possibilities
of the First World. Nature and not technology reigns here.
 Sibilance: “sharp slanting sleet…”

Imagery etc.

Tone and Mood

The mood is nostalgic, as the speaker had longed for a place he used to live, the
islands, more specifically the beachside. The South appears to be more friendly and
live able while the North is full of harsh weather conditions.

__________________________________________________________________________________
_______

Focus Poem: “Sonnet Composed Upon Westminster

Bridge”

Summary:
This poem praises the city of London at the height of its importance and expansion
during the Industrial Revolution; it was at this time that the city truly transformed
into the modern capital it is known as today. 

Annotation:
The poem was written in 1802. As typical for a sonnet, it consists of fourteen verses,
which can be divided, in other words arranged, into four parts – there are three
quatrains and one final couplet. The rhyme scheme is adapted to the form of the
sonnet which leads to the rhyme pattern abba abba cdcdcd. The last striking point
about the structure of the poem is the occurrence of many punctuation marks which
slow down the speed of the sonnet while reading it. Therefore the reader has the
possibility (is rather forced) to read and understand the poem in a closer sense and is
able to fully enjoy the poem.

The first quatrain deals with the description of the appeal of beauty which can be
recognized by looking around while standing on the bridge. The speaker of the poem
declares the view as most impressive – the earth is not able to show people
something fairer than the view from Westminster Bridge, so it is a kind of uniqueness
which is shown here. This position is supported by the second verse which tells that
anybody who is attracted by the view cannot evade, only if this person probably has
a deaf/dull character. In the next verse the speaker’s attraction cumulates – the sight
is personified as a majesty which possibly is so heartfelt that it will touch everyone’s
soul. The comparison made in the fourth verse is very interesting – the city wears the
beauty of the morning like a garment. This fact implies that the beauty of the
morning is something temporal in the city. A garment is a piece of cloth which can be
worn but taken off as well. Consequently, the beauty can only be regarded in the
morning or rather the morning represents the beauty. When the day continues, the
beauty vanishes, just because the life of the city begins. People go to work, factories
start to produce their goods and cause a lot of smoke; in other words, the arising
pollution will darken the city’s appearance and charisma, too. The fifth, sixth and the
seventh verse tell that the morning’s beauty is silent and bare; all buildings and ‘non-
living’ things like ships and theatres can be watched without a blurred view – they
are just visible. In general it is hardly possible to see any of them (caused by pollution
etc., ), especially when they are situated in some distance from the bridge, but the
speaker of the poem (verse 8) describes them as “[…] bright and glittering in the
smokeless air.”

The next three verses deal with the charisma of the sun which starts to give the first
beams of light to the landscape (valley, rock and hill) surrounding London. This kind
of natural spectacle must have evoked deep emotions in the speaker of the poem who
tells us that he neither saw something like that nor he experienced such a relaxed
feeling connected with this sight – the whole trouble of business-like London was
absent at this moment and nothing uneasy or stressful remained. The twelfth verse
tells us that the river flows at its own will. In general the Thames would have been
dammed up with the intention to use the water power for industries or something
like that by the inhabitants of London. But in the morning the river is free, possesses
its own will and is able to glide in every direction, at least so far this would be
possible. The last but one verse refers to the already mentioned calmness. The
speaker of the sonnet might be a little bit confused by the almost deathly silence and
therefore he addresses God. It can be regarded as a question to God when the
speaker says that even the houses seem to have fallen asleep. It must have been
unreal, in other words incomprehensible, to see that London, which was the biggest
city on earth at this time, was lying still without a hint of movement.

See this website for further information:

https://www.slideshare.net/ronaldodegazon/composed-upon-westminster-bridge-
analysis

Form and metre:

Petrarchan Sonnet in Iambic Pentameter
“Composed Upon Westminster Bridge” is a Petrarchan sonnet, as opposed to a
Shakespearian sonnet or a Spenserian sonnet. Petrarch was a famous Italian
Renaissance poet whose sonnets eventually became well known across Europe.
Romantic poets appreciated Petrarchan sonnets in part because Italy was thought to
be the hub of classical European civilization, and they loved the classics (i.e., all
things relating to ancient Greece and Rome).
A Petrarchan sonnet has fourteen lines that are divided into two sections: one with
eight lines and one with six. At the ninth line, the poem makes a "turn" (or volta in
Italian) and begins to elaborate in a different way on the subject or, sometimes,
introduce a new topic altogether. Wordsworth’s sonnet has a more subtle turn. In the
first eight lines he introduces the idea that he has never seen such beauty before and
then describes the scene. In the last six lines he returns to the idea of unparalleled
beauty, this time comparing London to the countryside. The rhyme scheme is fairly
simple: ABBAABBA CDCDCD. Only one pair of rhyming lines is slant (not quite a
real rhyme, but almost): "by" and "majesty" in lines 2 and 3.

The poem is written in a loose iambic pentameter, consisting of five ("penta") pairs of
unstressed and stressed beats ("iambs"):

Dear God! | the ver|-y hous|-es seem | a-sleep.

But not all of the lines follow this pattern. The first two lines, for example, both begin
on stressed beats: "Earth" and "Dull." This loose rhythm comes closer to capturing
momentary experience and a conversational tone than a stricter meter would.
Wordsworth tried to write how regular people speak, which is one of the reasons he
is considered one of the first "modern" English poets.

THEMES: appreciation for nature, man and the natural environment, admiration,
transient beauty…

Major literary devices:

 Line 1: The claim that no sight is more beautiful than the view from
Westminster Bridge is a case of hyperbole, or exaggeration.
 Line 2: The word "dull" suggests a contrast with a knife or some other
unsharpened object. In the implicit metaphor, the dull person's soul has been
worn down by time and experience.
 Line 3: To say that something is "touching in its majesty" is almost a paradox, a
contradiction in terms. A touching sight is intimate and personal, while a
majestic one is grand and public. With this phrase, Wordsworth comes close to
capturing the indescribable feeling of familiarity and distance all at once.
 Lines 9-11: Lines 9 and 11 have a parallel structure, in which he claims that the
effect of the morning light on London creates a beauty that has "never" been
experienced before. As in the first line, these claims are hyperboles.
 The most striking figure of speech in the poem is personification. It dresses the
city in a garment and gives it a heart, makes the sun "in his first splendour" a
benefactor, and bestows on the river a will of its own.  
  Line 3, alliteration: A sight so touching in its majesty 
Lines 4 & 5 simile: This City now doth like a garment wear / The beauty of
 the morning: silent bare (comparison of beauty to a garment) 
Line 13: metaphor: Dear God! the very houses seem asleep; (comparison of
houses to a creature that sleeps)

Tone: This poem is read with a sense of wonder. The speaker is awestruck by the image
confronting him almost because it is so unexpected in the heart of the world’s busiest
city and can’t hide his passion for what he sees.
Mood: calm, tranquil

Focus poem: “Once upon a time”

Summary: This is a poem by the Nigerian poet Gabriel Okara, in which he laments the lost
innocence of youth. In it he condemns the hypocrisy of adults – hemmed in and constrained by
rules and conventions – adopting masks for different occasions: for lying, cheating and betraying
– whereas childhood is portrayed as a time of honest laughter, and spontaneity.

The title: “Once upon a time” conjures images of the past. It also connotes the idea of a
fairytale, thereby piquing readers’ interests.

Annotations:
Stanza one tells of the conversation/monologue between what seems to be a father and son,
where the father wants to learn from his son how to go back to normality (being genuine) and no
longer insincere. The poem starts by the father telling his son how the people used to laugh with
their hearts’. Also, this description in the poem gives the impression of genuine emotion given
off by the people.
Stanza two then reveals more of the past when it is said that, ‘they used to shake hands with
their hearts’, again this image reveals true and genuine emotion. But just as in the first Stanza the
present reality is then discussed when it is said that, ‘that has gone, now they only shake hands
without hearts while their left hands search his empty pockets’. This shows that again the people
are not true and seem to be using the man to see what they can get.

Stanza three of the poem starts on a positive note, with the phrases: ‘feel at home’, ‘come
again’, but the speaker goes on to say that he will ‘come again,’ ‘once, twice’ but there will ‘be
no more thrice’ for then ‘I find doors shut on me’. This shows that the people lie when they say
the ‘positive phrases’. Their insincerity is reflected in the language they use.

Stanza four presents the adaptations and solutions that the man has found to counter the
problems. It starts by saying that the man has, ‘learned many things’, already suggesting that he
has changed to fit in.
He tells of the false personalities or of his ‘many faces’. He tells that he has learned to ‘wear’
these faces, suggesting that he wears faces for different situations. For example, he says he has
an ‘office-face, street-face, and host-face, proving that he acts differently under different
circumstances. He then adds that they have, ‘conforming smiles, like a fixed portrait’. This
suggests, even more, falseness and insincerity.

Structure and form:

✔ The poem is told from a first person perspective.
✔ Written in free verse (which might account for the speaker’s distress and struggles).
✔ Seems natural and conversational (the speaker’s audience is primarily his son (perhaps a
pre-teen/teen).
✔ Dramatic monologue

Major themes to be explored: Childhood innocence/experience, dishonesty, parental

influence/parenting, stereotypes, loss of innocence, hypocrisy, adult world vs. The child world vs.
The adult world.

Loss of innocence: The theme of ‘loss of innocence’ is prominent in the poem. It is make evident
by the speaker’s interaction with his son, where he feverishly yearns to be as innocently sincere
as his young son. He wants to “unlearn all these muting things”; this suggests that he has learnt
how to behave in a way which “mutes” or silences his real emotions. He wants to get rid of his
false laugh which “shows only my teeth like a snake’s bare fangs” – the comparison with the
snake’s fangs makes the false, mask-like smile seem dangerously deceptive. The speaker regrets
the loss of his innocence, but hopes his son can teach him to regain his childhood innocence.

Childhood innocence: There is no doubt that childhood innocence is at the heart of the poem
“Once Upon a Time”. In fact, the child in the poem is a symbol of innocence, purity, enthusiasm,
happiness, and genuineness lacking in society. The child represents the group of people who
have not been affected by Western Culture and abode by their own culture. The speaker, having
knowledge of the child’s untouched innocence, is struck by a sense of self-loathing and regret.
He then turns to his son in his time of need and asks him to help him unlearn whatever he has
learned and helped him regain his child-like innocence. Ultimately, the speaker represents a
group of people in society (whether it be western culture or otherwise) who are generally
disingenuous, while the persona (the son) is the epitome of all that is pure and unimpeachable.

Poetic Devices:
One of the poetic devices used is simile. The poet says that “people’s eyes are as cold as ice”.
This means that there is no warmth or real feeling in the words that they say, or how they behave,
thereby allowing readers to visualize individuals who are ‘cold’ and unwelcoming akin to a block
of ice.
“...with all their conforming smiles like a fixed portrait.”The poet compares people’s smiles to
that of ‘fixed portrait’ to emphasize people’s disingenuous nature. If you think about a portrait, it
is usually very formal and stiff/fixed, even uncomfortable; therefore, the implication is that the
smiles are actually fake and stiff/fixed. They are conforming or trying to fit, to a preconceived
mould that is set up by societal expectations.

“I have learnt to wear many faces like dresses” the comparison between the ‘wearing of faces
like dresses’ indicates that expressions and emotions are in-a-way disposable. Cognizant of this
fact, the speaker therefore chooses to ‘wear’ appropriate ‘faces’ for different occasions.

Metaphor: “shake hands without hearts.” this creates an image/gesture that is carried out in a
disingenuous manner. ‘without hearts’ suggests a lack of sincerity, but it also reveals a hidden
deceit within an individual who performs a kind gesture but his/her heart is filled with hatred.

Sibilance: “so show me son...” this device emphasises the softness of the speaker’s voice
(actually being genuine) in his attempt to ‘unlearn’ the things that made him insincere.

Other devices: Repetition; contrast; assonance etc.

Tone: The speaker’s tone is one of disappointment, largely because he believes that he has made
several wrong decisions by not being honest with himself and instead adopting dishonest
qualities seen in society.

Mood: the poem’s mood is one of regret-- this can be deduced based on the speaker’s
conversation with his son about the things he has done that are truly disingenuous.

______________________________________________________________________________
__

“The Woman Speaks to the Man who has Employed her son”
Summary: This poem is the story of a single mother who has great hopes that her son will make
something of himself and in turn be a means of lifting them out of poverty. Despite all the
sacrifices she has made for him, he is drawn to a life of crime by ‘the man’ who he sees as a
father figure. The woman cannot change the path her son has taken and prepares for the violent
death her son will surely meet. She prays for her son and prays against the man who has led him
astray as this is all she can do.
The Title: “The Woman Speaks to the Man who has Employed her son” is structured in a
sentence that is relevant yet contradictory to the content of the poem. ‘The Woman’ actually does
not speak directly to ‘the man who has employed her son’. It is, however, intriguing as readers
will automatically look forward to a conflict (that does not exist).

Annotations:
Stanza 1

In the first stanza the woman realises that she is pregnant. Her pregnancy is not easy as she
endures illness. The poet uses the metaphor “a metallic tide rising in her mouth each morning” to
describe the nausea of morning sickness. Even though she is sick she carries the baby for the
entire nine months of pregnancy. “She carried him full term tight up under her heart” refers not
only to the baby’s position in the woman’s body (under the chest cavity) but under her heart
shows how much love she has for her unborn child.

Stanza 2

The second stanza begins with the simile “She carried him like the poor carry hope”. This shows
the hope the woman has in her son accomplishing things in life, for example migrating to work,
and helping her get a better life. Her carrying of the child is compared to the poor carrying hope
to show how carefully she carries the child and how the child is a means for her upliftment. It is
compared to poor carrying hope because all the poor have is hope combined with hard work,
nothing is simply given to them. There is the repetition of ‘hope’ as this is a theme in the poem.
The reader also finds out that she is a single mother due to the father abandoning them. There is
sarcasm by describing him as “he was fair-minded he treated all his children with equal and
unbiased indifference”. It shows that his ‘fairness’ was seen in that he abandoned all his children
equally.

Stanza 3

The third stanza starts by stating the difficult task the woman had of raising her son as both
mother and father. She “set no ceiling on what he could be”; she works hard to enable him to
succeed in life. She dedicates her life to him being successful in his. After this the first reference
to the man appears. The persona is not a character in the poem but speaks in the third person.
This allows the persona to see everything and be a witness to the story. The persona uses a pun to
describe the boy’s relationship with the man, “he tells her he is working for you”. Working here
does not refer to an honest job but the money the son makes from criminal activity. There is also
sarcasm when referring to the man, “that you value him so much you give him one whole sub-
machine gun for him alone”. The man really has no value for the son as he only gives him a life
of crime and death.

Stanza 4

The sarcasm towards the man continues in stanza 4, “He says you are like a father to him she is
wondering what kind of father would give a son hot and exploding death, when he asks him for
bread”. This verse shows the motivations for the son joining the man, a need for a father figure
and a need for a job. Because the son cannot get both in a legal or natural way, he turns to the
man as criminals provide these things for poor boys. The woman buys cloth and a hat to make
her clothes to attend her son’s funeral. The stanza ends with the metaphor “his bloody salary” to
refer to the eventual fate of the boy; a violent death.

Stanza 5

The fifth stanza shows the condition of the mother when faced with her son’s life choices and her
response to it. She cannot force her son to take a different path or force the man to leave her son
alone. All she can do is pray for her son and prays against the man so he will be removed from
their lives, “She has no power over you and this at the level of earth” The persona here warns of
the dangers of causing a mother so much pain, “She says psalms for him she reads psalms for
you she weeps for his soul her eye water covers you.” The one who makes a mother cry will face
the consequences, if not in this world then it will come in the next or through some divine
intervention.

Stanza 6

In the final stanza there are several Biblical allusions to men who have destroyed themselves
because of the poor choices they made in life. There is the reference to Judas who betrayed Jesus,
the thief on the left side of the cross who did not believe in Jesus and Absalom who was King
David’s son who rebelled against him committing three sins in one act; rebelling against ones
father, king and prophet. Her upbringing of her son is treated as a metaphorical sou-sou (similar
to a partner-draw) in which she has put in two hands (deposits), one as mother and father, but her
return is a dead son. “His mother is the banker, her draw though is first and last for she still
throwing two hands as mother and father” This also refers to all the hope she was banking on her
son to change their lives. It can also refer to the thief on the left side of the cross being a banker.
In this way she is betrayed by his actions.

Structure and form:

✔ 3rd person perspective.
✔ Written in octaves.

Themes: Childhood experience, Race and gender, Death, Parental influence/parenting,

motherhood and female identity, stereotypes...

PARENTING
The poem points out the need for both parents to contribute to raising their child. Boys,
especially, need their fathers as role models. Parenting is depicted as a difficult and often
rewarding task, especially when the children become rebellious...

Motherhood and female identity.

Motherhood, especially for single mothers is challenging from the onset of pregnancy to the
growing up stage of the child. This mother tries her best with her son and cannot be blamed for
his delinquency. As a mother, she has high ambitions for her son and is grieved at how easily he
is swayed by a negative influence. Her experience reflects the pain of all mothers through the
ages. The fear of bad influences leading their children astray is one of the recurring anxieties of
motherhood and the image of the heartbroken mother praying for her wayward child seems to
have become a stereotype of mothers over the ages...

LITERARY DEVICES:

SIMILE
Line 17: The employer is being compared to a father figure. This implies that this person fills a
gap in the son's life.
SARCASM
The persona appears to praise the child's father by referring to him as 'fair-minded'. She is,
however, chastising him for not only ignoring his son, but all of his other children.
IRONY (situational) The son innocently tells his mother that his employer values him so much
that he gave him a whole sub-machine gun for himself. The irony in this situation is that if you
really care about someone, you do NOT give them a gun due to the negative results that are
bound to occur. [also used as sarcasm]
ALLUSION (biblical)
Lines 28-29: This line alludes to a particular verse in Luke of the Christian Bible. The verse
questions what the actions of a good father should be.

Lines 38-39: Psalms is an important chapter in the Christian Bible. In this chapter there are
verses for protection, the mother uses those for her son, as well as verses for retribution and
rebuking. It is implied that the mother chooses those for the employer.

Lines 43-45: In the Christian Bible, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus. Therefore, it does not bode
well for the mother if she is in a 'partnership' with this person's mother because she might also be
betrayed. The banker in the 'partnership' also happens to be the thief on the left hand side of the
cross' mother. This also does not bode well for the mother if the apple does not fall far from the
tree.

Line 49: Absalom is the son of David, in the Christian Bible. Absalom betrayed his father, which
implies that the mother feels betrayed by her son because she has placed all her hopes in him.

Other devices/features: Apostrophe,

Tone: The diction indicates that the mother seems overwhelmed with despair and disbelief;
resignation.
Mood: bitter despair, disappointment, sadness.