He is in the state of indecisiveness, troubled, wishing to see peace and harmony in the region. His conscience forbids him to favor injustice. He has been given English tongue which he loves on the one hand, and on the other, he cannot tolerate the brutal slaughter of Africans with whom he shares blood and some traditions. The persona, probably the poet himself, can take favor of none of them since both bloods circulate along his veins. It is, in short, about the poet’s ambivalent feelings towards the Kenyan terrorists and the counter-terrorist white colonial government, both of which were ‘inhuman’, during the independence struggle of the country in the 1950s. Far cry from Africa A Far Cry from Africa by Derek Walcott deals with the theme of split identity and anxiety caused by it in the face of the struggle in which the poet could side with neither party. May be this is a recollection of what happened to his father and forefathers during the Nazi regime. Sarcastically he says that where he been in Auschwitc he would not be bothered for searching a job, as he would have been sent straight to the concentration camp, gassed and killed. Finally the poet concludes and says that he have passed forty years of age and that forms a hindrance for him to be eligible for job. There is a binding in the promises and none of them were lies. The poet says that each day is new experience for him and he has the duty of fulfilling the prophecies that some day all the Jews will be back to the promise land.
He is trying to recollect life’s experiences patched with many patches. In the second stanza of the poem, the poet has grown old and he is approaching the age his father when he died. My name’s, my donor s name actually means that the poet has changed his original surname Pfeuffer to Amichai meaning “My people live”.
The poet wanted to have bonding to all those who have contributed to his existence. He compares himself to a house of prayer in Jerusalem or charitable Institution that has been erected as a result of charity and donation. All Generations Before Me and Far Cry from Africa Essay Example
0 kommentar(er)
