HALF-CASTE

BY JOHN AGARD
By Anaïs Liechti and Lyn Saad
CONTEXT
■ Half-caste meaning: someone whose
parents are of different races. The term
is often considered offensive, since the
term ‘caste’ is associated with racial
hierarchy.
■ John Agard himself is mixed race: his
mother is Portuguese and his father is
black.
■ He grew up in Guyana which is in the
Caribbean and then moved to England
in 1977.
■ He won the Paul Hamlyn Award for
Poetry in 1997 and has travelled
extensively throughout the world
performing his poetry
Half-Caste by John Agard
20 half-caste till dem overcast why I offer yu half-a-hand
so spiteful dem dont want de sun 40 an when I sleep at night
Excuse me
pass I close half-a-eye
standing on one leg
ah rass/ consequently when I
I'm half-caste
explain yuself dream
wha yu mean I dream half-a-dream
Explain yuself
25 when yu say half-caste
5 wha yu mean an when moon begin to
yu mean when tchaikovsky
when yu say half-caste glow
sit down at dah piano
yu mean when picasso 45 I half-caste human being
an mix a black key
mix red an green cast half-a-shadow
wid a white key
is a half-caste canvas/ but yu must come back
30 is a half-caste symphony/
10 explain yuself tomorrow
wha yu mean wid de whole of yu eye
Explain yuself
when yu say half-caste
wha yu mean an de whole of yu ear
yu mean when light an shadow
Ah listening to yu wid de keen 50 an de whole of yu mind
mix in de sky
half of mih ear
15 is a half-caste weather/
35 Ah lookin at yu wid de keen an I will tell yu
well in dat case
half of mih eye de other half
england weather
and when I'm introduced to yu of my story
nearly always half-caste
I'm sure you'll understand
in fact some o dem cloud
 
 General Form, Structure, and Language
■ Written in free verse.
■ No rhyme scheme, uses internal
rhyme and repetition at times to
create a rhythm.
■ This rhythm belongs to the tradition
of Caribbean poetry which is
designed to be heard not read (read
aloud).
■ Two parts:
-1st half Agard uses a series of humorous
metaphors to show that the word ‘half-
caste’ is meaningless
-2 half Agard talks sarcastically about
nd
being ‘half’ a person.
■ Lacks punctuation, expresses a sense
of urgency.
■ Use of Caribbean English spelling the
words phonetically.
■ Lacks completion which also points
back at the poem being ‘half’ only
■ Uses imagery especially metaphors.
■ Constant use of repetition to show
how he feels about being called “half-
caste”
■ Tone: generally angry, accusing and
demanding tone, but in some parts its
humorous.
Stanza 1
Excuse me
standing on one leg
I'm half-caste
‘Caste’ is used in the sense meaning ‘purity’, therefore it’s easy to assume
that ‘half-caste’ is an insult to the poet for being mixed race. It is also
considered racist and fueled with prejudice and ignorance.
Agard employs sarcasm when he is seemingly excusing himself for being
‘half-caste’ and mixed race, but it becomes evident in the next stanzas
that he is rather lauding the fact that he’s mixed race.
Stanza 2 Part 1
Explain yuself Receiver aggression, repeated 3 times in
5 wha yu mean stanza 2  imperative repetition.
when yu say half-caste
When the poet uses “yu” he is directly
yu mean when picasso
addressing the reader, in this case people who
mix red an green
have called him half-caste in an insulting
is a half-caste canvas/
manner. Agard is asking them to “excuse
him”.

John Agard uses a metaphor of

Picasso, a famous and talented Agard has a very demanding and accusing
artist, mixing red and green colors tone toward the audience and reader of the
to create a painting. poem. The use of the slash (/) throughout the
The metaphor is again a symbol of poem emphasizes his anger and accusation.
him being “half-caste”. He is
implying that being “half-caste” is
like being a masterpiece.
 Stanza 2 Part 2
10 explain yuself Here Agard is expressing a new idea, and he introduces it by
wha yu mean the repetition of the same verses he used before: demanding
when yu say half-caste the reader to explain themselves.
yu mean when light an shadow This second example is much longer than the previous one,
mix in de sky showing Agard’s growing anger toward the person he’s
15 is a half-caste weather/ addressing.
well in dat case Agard compares himself to the English weather saying that the
england weather mixing of sun and clouds in the sky makes the weather “half-
nearly always half-caste caste”
in fact some o dem cloud
Agard’s anger really shows when he uses “spiteful”, when he’s
20 half-caste till dem overcast
discussing how the clouds don’t want the sun to come out.
so spiteful dem dont want de sun pass
The line “ah rass” shows the peak
ah rass/
of Agard’s anger. It’s an expression
in Creole that literally translates
Agard is very passionate about this subject and is in a rush to
“my ass”, something someone says
defend himself for being “half-caste”
when angrily dismissing someone
else’s argument.
Stanza 2 Part 3
explain yuself Third repetition in the same stanza.
wha yu mean
25 when yu say half-caste
yu mean when tchaikovsky
sit down at dah piano He demands to know if Tchaikovsky created
an mix a black key half-caste music because he mixes black and
wid a white key white keys on the piano.
30 is a half-caste symphony/
Contrasting pairs, to show
Black the mixing of races
White

In stanza 2 Agard gives possible example of what the person he’s

addressing means when they say “half-caste”.
He uses many metaphors to compare himself being “half-caste” to
beautiful paintings, weather and symphonies.
His tone is demanding and angry, but also humorous.
 Stanza 3
Agard begins the third stanza with a structured
Explain yuself
wha yu mean argument as in stanza 2.
Ah listening to yu wid de keen He ceases to give examples and writes in this stanza
half of mih ear
35 Ah lookin at yu wid de keen
of having only ‘half’ of everything because he is
half of mih eye “half-caste”, therefore only ‘half’ a person.
and when I'm introduced to yu
I'm sure you'll understand
The constant rep. of “half” emphasizes Agard’s
why I offer yu half-a-hand view that “half” is derogatory.
40 an when I sleep at night The use of “whole” at the end is to show extreme
I close half-a-eye
consequently when I dream contrast being half and whole.
I dream half-a-dream
an when moon begin to glow
45 I half-caste human being This stanza is brimming with sarcasm: one can
cast half-a-shadow imagine the speaker spitting the words at someone
but yu must come back tomorrow
who thinks being mixed race in in any way lesser
wid de whole of yu eye
an de whole of yu ear than not being mixed race.
50 an de whole of yu mind
Stanza 4
an I will tell yu This stanza shows that there is more to
de other half him than what someone sees at a first
of my story glance; and that his race and background
aren’t his full story.
Stanza 4 continues stanza 3, where the
poet finishes off by telling the reader to
return with the “whole” of themselves,
and here he tells them that then only will
he tell them the other “half” of his story.

He is telling them to stop being narrow-

minded to be able to discover who he
really is.
Citations

■ http://essalanglit.weebly.com/uploads/1/0/5/4/10543533/half-caste.pdf
■ https://slideplayer.com/slide/10225063/
■ https://poemanalysis.com/half-caste-by-john-agard-poem-analysis/