WEEK 8

1. AFRICAN POETRY: A GOVERNMENT DRIVER ON HIS RETIREMENT BY

CHIBUIKE ONU.

Background of the poem.

The coming of colonialism caused a major shift of livelihood of many
Africans from agriculture to paid employment especially in the civil service.
Many Africans were employed as drivers and clerks to the white man, even
after independence. The rush to civil service jobs was not as lucrative as they
people thought especially the low ranking officers like the drivers and cooks.
The tedious nature of the civil service work is one major reason many
employees look forward to their retirement with excitement.
The poet comments on the tedious everyday life of the Nigerian civil
servant .Though some civil servants in Nigeria falsify their certificates to stay
long in office but the poetic persona in the poem welcomes his retirement
from civil service as a place of service to the nation rather than a place of
redundancy,.
The other background to the poem is the drink-and-drive attitude of
man road uses in Nigeria .Celebration is good but for the poet persona to
throw caution in the air and die disastrously because of drunk-driving is bad.

Summary of the poem

This is a moral poem that calls for caution and moderation during
celebration. It has been a general warning to motorist to avoid driving after
being drunk just like the case of a government driver on his retirement who
drinks himself to death.
In stanza one, the poet informs us that the government driver has
been driving for many years with all commitment and faithfulness to his
‘fatherland’. As he clocks the age of retirement, he organizes a celebration
as a mark of thanksgiving to God and honour for his meritorious service to
the country.
In stanza two, the driver in obedience to “duty rules and regulations”
shuts his mouth for many years from drinking as he pummeled his boozy
throat”. He disciplines himself in discharging his duties as a driver and he is
forced to go home a free man without any wrong doing.
Stanza three brings us to the party organized in honour of the retiring
government driver for which he invites his friends and well wishers to come
and celebrate his freedom. His abstinence from drinking is over and he is
ready to drink as he wants.
The climax of the celebration is seen in stanzas four that comes with
the gift of a car for his thirty five years of service from government
The driver stanza five calls on his friend to come and” joy till no more
joy to joy” shows the extent of reckless celebration of the occasion.
Then stanza seven of the poem displays the unguided conduct of the
driver who gives himself to excess drinking at the height of jubilation, the
driver goes ahead in “battling with his bottle booze” indicating that he is
drunk beyond control to his tragic death with the brand new car.
He boomed his brand new car
And it sent him home
Home to rest in peace.(line 32-34)

Classwork
Comment on the background of the poem.

Themes and language in the poem

Themes in the poem
1.The danger of drink and drive culture
one of the major themes in the poem is the danger in driving when
drunk .While many people use alcohol for celebration for victories and
 burials it is also a substance that sends people to their early death, especially
when driving .The poet uses the government driver to talk on the effect of
drunk driving not only in Nigeria but around the world.
The day the government drivers retires from his work seems the
happiest day of his life as he calls his friend to come and rejoice with him .He
thinks that the best way to celebrate his joy and freedom is through
excessive drinking of alcohol.
Being carried by the influence of alcohol, he jumps into his new car to
drive home which unfortunately results in his tragic and untimely death. This
proves that alcohol makes people have poor vision while driving .Driving
requires accurate concentration for appropriate judgment .So, alcohol
consumption while driving is very dangerous.

1. The joy of retirement from public service

The poem also talks about the joys and sense of fulfilment that comes
with one’s retirement from active service to one’s nation .During
services, it seems one is in bondage, hence the civil servant looks
forward to the day of his retirement as we see in the poet persona
.According to the poem, ”today ,he will go home a free man”(line 7).
Throughout his active service years he has endured the
regulated civil service life for a long time and is now ready to celebrate
his freedom where he will no longer be subjected to the rules and
regulations of the civil service.In attempt to to celebrate his freedom
that he invites his friends to come and celebrate with him, though the
celebration turns into a tragic end.

Literary devices/Figures of speech

1. Stucture
The poem has thirty – three lines of seven stanzas with irregular
lengths which makes it a free verse poem. It is narrative in nature
and can be broken into three parts – the first parts talks about the
poetic person as a poetic driver ready to celebrate his retirement as a
committed and faithful civil servant. The second part is his
 expectations for his celebration and the last part gives account of his
catastrophic turn of events leading to his tragic end.
2. Irony
One of the poetic device used in the poem is irony. It is an irony of
situation to say that the poetic persona’s hope and aspiration to live
a free man is clashed on the very day he is celebrating his liberation
from a thirty – year bondage. It is even more ironic when he causes
his own death. Moment of celebration has brought him to a tragic
end which makes the poem very good example of situational irony.
He has damaged thirty – years of tough condition but could not
manage just a day of his freedom.
3. Metaphor
An example of it is “wheel”. It is metaphorically used to represent the
cars the driver has driven for many years.
4. Euphemism
“And it sent him home”(line 32), ‘ Home to rest in peace’(line 33): the
two statements means death.

Classwork
i) Comment on two themes you learn from the poem.
ii) Mention four figures of speech in the poem and explain two.

2. STUDY THE POEM BAT.

WEEK 9

1. READ AGAIN READ AND SUMMARISE THE LAST 3 CHAPTERS OF INVISIBLE

MAN.
2. READ AND SUMMARISE ACT 4 OF MIDSUMMER NIGHT DREAM.
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