Africa, Beautiful yet unappreciated
Africa, Sahara to the Atlantic
Africa, From Zulu Land to Yoruba Land
Africa, From Nile River to River Niger
Africa, Rain and Sunshine round the year,
Africa, With her greenery lustre
Africa, With Coolness, Calmness, a Serenity unequal
Africa, Your hospitality and warmth taken for granted
Africa, Raped and left desolate, yet richly blessed
Africa, Your Children scattered all over the World crying for you
Africa, You are simply mine Africa.
- Segun Rasaki
There are several poetic devices used in this poem by Segun Rasaki. The most obvious is of couse repitition. The word "africa" is repeated at the beginning of every line creating a strong connection to the word. Also this repition made me look at the poem objectivly and remember that it is talking about a very real place. The second poetic device used is the constant personification of Africa. Something I found interesting is the capitaliztion of some words. There are examples in every line, but one of the most powerful is line 7:
Africa, With Coolness, Calmness, a Serenity unequal. The capitalization of Coolness, Calmness, and Serenity add power and meaning to those words.
I really enjoyed the contrasting and contradicting opinions and description of Africa in this poem. It reminded me of the complicated reality of this continent.
What a great poem! I love the way it was written, with "Africa" at the start of every line. Each line also paints a vivid picture in my head, from Africa's beautiful landscape to, like you said, its depressing issues. "Greeny lustre" really works. Also, I think the line "Africa, Your Children scattered all over the World crying for you" describes the people all around the globe who care about Africa and are trying to help.
ReplyDeleteThis was great poem. I especialy liked this poem because of the imagery. Africa is almost so unknown to us because how many of us go on vacations to africa? It is true that there are many problems on the continent but I think that this poem really brins out the beauty. Good work nam.
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