Poetry Project BIG Journal

1. I obviously need to work on my public speaking, because I tend to be far more articulate in my writing and prove unable to demonstrate that through speech. Because of this lack of public speaking skill, I tended to ramble on and repeat things that did not need to be repeated. I also clearly noticed how I could not come up with synonyms and therefore used the same word numerous times. I did not hit all the points that I had when I practiced, skipping some accidently, and therefore causing empty space that I tried to fill in with repetition or something made up on the spot. I could have also used a bit of audience participation to keep the audience engaged. In addition, it would have been nice if there had been more information on Frank Chipasula, because it was really hard to find decent sources that said much about him even though his poetry, in my opinion, was great. I liked this project, but I think it should have been limited to where either everybody does a power point or nobody does, because presenting a power point is much different than speaking with nothing in front of a podium. I also liked that it was very independent, yet all of the projects seamed together by the end. Other presentations were definitely easily relatable.

2. Frank Chipasula is a very educated man that sees the world, and more specifically Malawi, through a different perspective. In my opinion, he successfully changes the readers perspective and informs them. He displays his opinion in a very sarcastic or ironic way, most clearly shone in his first poem of the anthology, "In a Free Country." He exhibits his personality unquestionably so in the first stanza:
They ran out of cuffs, but
with apologies for the inconvenience,
they carefully wrapped barbed wire
round the wrists of the political prisoners
who, as if in ritual stretched
their arms out to the young masters. (1-6)
My first question upon reading this stanza was if "political prisoners" referred to politicians turned prisoners, or if it referred to prisoners of politics. Prisoners of politics could relate more to Frank Chipasula himself, having been somewhat of a slave to the political system and eventually rebelling, earning him his exile. Throughout all of his poems he uses quite a bit of harsh and sharp words that hint at his considerably traitorous nature. These words include cuffs, barbed wire, chains, stinging whips, blood, crumbling image, anger, tyranny, ravaged, malarial air. Many of these word or motifs reoccur several times over the few pages he has in this anthology. He uses repetition not so much in single poems, but throughout separate ones. The most prevalent motifs include tyranny, barbed wire, and handcuffs. All of these motifs scream pain and suffering, especially in the manner of which he used them. Some of my favorite and most influential lines include some from "A Love Poem From My Country" such as "hearts thumping with pulses of desire or fear" and "I will emerge from the night breaking into song / Like the sun, blowing out these evil stars" (13, 24-25). The former strikes me because of the uncertainty or widely mixed emotions displayed. Desire and fear could not be more opposite, and I believe Chipasula is trying to describe the uncertainty and therefore willingness to follow like blind sheep that is shown in Malawi. The latter line exemplifies his repetitive use of nature in his metaphors and similes, very similar to Blantyre where he refers to "When the moon awoke, with bags under his eyes" (6). This poem, Blantyre (the name of a Malawian city), also uses the motif of barbed wire, describing the fences lining the "personal prison where fear rules"(17).
"Nightfall" and "Nightmare" both carry similar names and significances. Another reoccurring theme, tyranny, which has clearly affected him deeply through his exile, is mentioned in both of these poems. Next comes his darkest poem of all through my perspective, "A Hanging." Written from Zomba Central Prison, this poem brought me back a scene in Night by Elie Wiesel, where the main character and all of his prisoners are forced to watch the still warm body of oe of their prisoners sway in the wind, much like Chipasula's description when he said "His pendulous body tolled" (1). In this poem, he also expresses the unjust and unequal treatment of criminals when he writes "Being political, he was not entitled / to the miraculous luck of the criminals" (44-45). This poem struck me the most, most vividly when the man was then killed with a poisonous syringe, an ending I did not see coming. Chipasula seems to enjoy doing something like this, tricking the reader by either giving off a surprise ending, like just mentioned, or titling a poem with something sarcastic, such as "A Love Poem for My Country" or "In a Free Country," where the mood and tone are not relevant at all to what the title suggests.

3. As a few students said in class before, I think that comparing these readers is like comparing apples and oranges: both fruit, yet still very different. Out of all the poetry I have read though, those from this anthology being specifically from Africa seem to be more on the darker side of the spectrum. Also, after learning the backgrounds of many of the poets, I discovered that many had similar backgrounds, and therefore the same influences or motives in their writing. The poem "Exile" by Mbella Sonne Dipoko has similar themes as my poet, but on the other hand does not seem like something he would write. Both poems express the dreary existence of exile and the affects of a big political change in their country (independence in Malawi, and invasion by troops in Cameroon). Dipoko, however, uses much more figurative language whereas Chipasula tends to be straight forward and literal. Lines like "The scaly hand of a child takes in greeting" are not something that is written in the same tone as Chipasula. This is exactly what I think differentiates these poets in the anthology. Many have similar influences and similar purposes, but their tone is what sets them all apart and makes them unique.
Then there are the different styles altogether, like Lenrie Peters, who have a possible European influence. The poem "Parachute Men" could not differ more. Frank Chipasula, as I said before, is very literal, but "Parachute Men" has very abstract ideas that could be manipulated into several meanings. The lines "Solid ground / Is not where you left it / As you plunge down" can refer to many things, not just the literal sense of parachuting. For example, one reader could interpret it as moving back somewhere to realize that everything has changed, in this way, Peters becomes a bit more of a puzzle than Chipasula tries to be. I think it is ironic though, because there is almost no information on Chipasula on the internet, creating a bit of an enigma itself.
Structure also varies greatly from poet to poet. Frank Chipasula uses full sentences and "proper" capitalization and other grammar, something I believe roots from his history as a novelist. Then, you read a poem like "The World" by Niyi Oundare from Nigeria, where there is no capitalization and no punctuation apart from a comma.
These differences, I believe, change from poet to poet, not country to country. This is why I believe that it is unfair to generalize African poets, or even Malawian poets. Similarities exist between any two poems just from the nature of poetry, and I could fairly confidently say that if I had been given a random poem from this anthology, I could not necessarily identify it as African.

Analysis of Tati-Loutard's Poetry

Through all ten of Tati-Loutard's poems in this anthology, the ideas of birth, death, and nature reoccur in some form. He expresses and connects these themes through figurative language such as metaphors, personification, and hyperbole.
In "News of My Mother," he calls nature through lines like "I am now very high upon the tree of seasons" and "by this fifteenth day of the moon." He uses this natural element to describe his feelings of this very idea of death that is so persistent through all of his works. In this poem specifically, he is speaking in regard to the death of his Mother, whom he clearly cared a lot for. This poem stands out to me because he is speaking of his personal encounter with death, rather than the idea in general.
He also often brings up the contrast of light and darkness, and how certain actions may be associated with a certain shade, per se. In "The Voices" he mentions "the insult and darkness of refusal" also known as "a sea full of impurities." All of his poems are or contain a very dark element. Whether it be death, or just something like the above mentioned "refusal."
HE often mentions the idea of death calling him, as if he were suicidal. In "Pilgrimage to Loango Strand" he says "Life sickens me." Then In "Death and Rebirth" he says "Does Death call me? Will it at least offer me / a mirror, a sheet of light where I can glimpse / My profile beyond the grave?" Notice he brings up the concept of light, this time implying a knowledge of some kind. He is clearly queasy about the unknown that is paired with life after death.

Pre-Poetry

Metaphor

Simile

Stanza

Line

Meter...rhythm/beat

Alliteration

Consonance

Assonance

Onomatopoeia

Elegy

Epic

Iambic Pentameter

Free verse

Haiku

Epigram

Sonnet

Villanelle

Sestina

Ode

Sonnet

Verse

Personification

Ultimate

Penultimate

DICTION

Oxymoron

Paradox

Allusion

Allegory

Tone/voice/mood

Vulta (energy shift such as in a sonnet)

Narrative poem

Lyrical poem

Repetition

Rhyme (e.g. rhyme scheme)

Sprung rhyme

Double entendre

Denotation

Connotation

Hyperbole

Poet vs Speaker (not author vs narrator)

Point of view

Syntax

Grammar and punctuation

Form vs content (what vs how)

Final African Short Stories Reading

The short story "Protista" by Dambudzo Marechara incorporates a fable like fantasy that I would love to explore if I get the chance. The thing I love about this short stories book is that the reader does not know what genre of literature they are reading until they have actually done the reading. The first passage of any of these short stories could probably pass off as biographical or realistic fiction, but once you dive further into the story, the fantasy world shows itself. Going into the reading of one of the sections, all that you know is the region that it came from, nothing about the validity. This causes the reader to be even more enveloped in a story which very well could be fictional, as they may think that it could be a first hand account. Although this is evident in multiple stories throughout this compilation, it really struck me in Protista. This short work of fiction begins with speak of a drought, winds, and a man that is sentenced to this desolate place. Seems realistic enough, right? Then this man/narrator talks about a circle that his love drew on the  wall when she left, claiming a sort of magical telling quality in it, throwing you for a loop. When you brush past that, the story seems to become more realistic again. Then suddenly the man wakes up and he is a tree. It is this sort of surprise twist that I would like to try out eventually.

I loved "The Coffee-Cart Girl" because it is very different from most of the stories we have read thus far. It does not reveal much about the location, making it more easily applicable to the reader, allowing the reader to place the "Metropolitan Steel Windows Ltd." wherever they want in the world. If the reader can place the setting somewhere they have been, seen, or experienced allows for a much more vivid picture in their mind. This relatable quality of the story intrigued me.

African Short Stories

One common concept that resides in many of the African stories in this book is the "story within a story." I noticed them right from the first section of West African stories where this concept was displayed multiple times. This can be shown through telling a fable of some sort or from telling a dream. There are many instances where, because of this, they switch back and forth from past and present voices. In "A Handful of Dates," Salih speaks of the past from a present point of view. It is more evident in these stories that the narrator is a person as opposed to an omniscient being. "The Bridegroom" seems to be completely focused on reminiscing as the young man realizes what will have to change to accommodate his soon to be wife. He reflects on how he lived his life before and makes constant references to the past. This idea of voice change and story within a story is far more predominant in the West African stories though.
I am also intrigued by the concept of language that resides particularly in the Southern Africa stories so far. It becomes a sort of barrier and even an exclusive club of sorts. In "Papa, Snake & I," Honwana uses the many languages to create definition between the mother and the servants. Most of the time she speaks Portuguese to her family or those at the same social standing as her, and speaks Ronga to servants such as Sartina (all evident on page 107). When she flips back and forth you can get a clear sense of how "out of the loop" the lower class would feel in this community. Speaking from experience, being in an area where people speak a language that you hardly know anything about can be frightening in a way because they could be talking about anything, even you. It is also condescending the way that she switches or when she uses Portuguese to talk to Sartina even though she knows that Sartina does not understand well. This divide was also evident in "The Bridegroom"where Gordimer uses language to create an even more substantial divide between the races and the social classes.

Nii Parkes Writing Exercise

Take somebody's voice and write their instructions for making one of their signature dishes. Then, jump right into their instructions on how to get somebody to like you.
Mom's instructions for lasagna
So really, all you have to do is throw everything together. You take the meat sauce (I like to throw quite a bit of spice in this, but to each his own) and spread that out along the bottom of a pan. Next you take the precooked noodles and lay out a single layer, maybe with a little overlap if the pasta is your favorite part, and spread ricotta over that. Repeat that as many times as you want to get the amount of lasagna desired. Cook for half an hour at 350F, although I always end up freezing at least half of it for later.
I don't think that there is a particular way to "get somebody to like you." Somebody's approval is not something that you try to get, it should just either come or not. Maybe make them some of my lasagna, haha. Although it is beyond cliche, I think that you should just be yourself, because otherwise you will be a fake "you" throughout your whole relationship. When you start out trying to impress somebody, you often find yourself trying to achieve a higher level with them at all times. A relationship does take work as is, but definitely should not take that much work. People's opinions of you are irrelevant. As Dr. Suess said, "today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one on earth that is youer than you." Be yourself, because everybody else is taken. If somebody wants to be friends with, for a cheesy example, somebody with a British accent, they will find a friend with a British accent, you shouldn't fake one just to please them.

Anowa Phase Two

Phase Two of Anowa seems to be centered on defining the different types of relationships occurring at this place (Ghana) and in this time (late 1800s?). The-mouth-that-eats-salt-and-pepper introduce the point of view that in a sense shows the classic opinions of the relationship that Anowa and Kofi Ako have. This seems to be another example of that resentment of westernized advancements that we have seen so much in our readings of other novels so far this year. Anowa and Kofi Ako make it appear as though they are one of the only couples in their culture that practice monogamy, and that this concept is very controversial. Kofi Ako is completely in favor of remaining this way, claiming feelings that are similar to those of love today. However, Anowa comes off as opposed to monogamy, and keeps recommending that Kofi Ako marries several more women. This relationship, therefore does not really give us a sense of what a typical relationship would have been in this particular setting.
Badua and Osam have something that appears to be closer to a classic relationship of the time, but it is still not completely clear because the old woman and old man don't offer much of an opinion on their relationship. Therefore, we can only truly assume the typical relationship of the setting through the old woman and old man's thoughts, opinions, and proverbs. My favorite line of this phase was when the Old Woman said "As the sourest yam / Is better than the sweetest guava, / The dumbest man is / Always better than a woman. / Or he thinks he is!" This quotation, not said until some of the very last lines of the phase, clearly sums up the masculine ideas that were currently typical. It shows that no matter what, every single man will be above any given women. No matter how hard a woman works, or how little a man does, there will always exist a clear and unmistakable divide between the two.