Gr 11 English Home Language

WEDNESDAY
Please read the notes on “African Poem” in your poetry book (pg. 47-48) and then read the notes
below:

AFRICAN POEM - Agostinho Neto

There on the horizon

the fire
Personification: Symbols of
and the dark silhouettes of the imbondeiro trees strength in Angola
The trees are given
bodies and arms. with their arms raised
The arms are raised
Green – fresh/ current/recent.
as in a form of 5 in the air the green smell of burnt palm trees
Refers to the recent victory just
protest against
after the conflict of the 13 yr.
oppression during
On the road civil war for independence.
colonisation.
the line of Bailundo porters
A city in the
groaning under the loads of crueira
Province Huambo,
in Angola.
in the room
Comes from the word ‘mulatlo’
10 the sweet sweet-eyed mulatress meaning ‘mixed-blood’. That is,
she is coloured.
retouching her face with rouge and rice-powder

the woman under the many clothes moving her hips

on the bed

the sleepless man thinking

15 of buying knives and forks to eat with at a table

 On the sky the reflections The fire here, is NOT of devastation
but one that brings comfort and
of the fire warmth.

and the silhouette of the blacks at the drums

Drums are a symbol of the rhythm
with their arms raised of life – the beating of a heart that
is central to survival.
20 in the air the warm tune of marimbas

On the road the porters

in the room the mulatress

on the bed the sleepless man The style and tone change
here, becoming shorter and
sterner as the people and the
speaker begin to feel safe,
supported and hopeful in
The burning coals consuming
Africa.

25 consuming with fire

The fire here is that of being
consumed with passion for their
the warm country of the horizons. country and the new possibilities.

History
Like any poet or writer Agostinho Neto (1922-1979) was influenced by the time and place in which he lived.
This was Angola during Portuguese rule, independence from Portugal and the civil war in Angola afterwards.
Angola, under Portuguese rule, was a difficult place to live. The Portuguese showed no interest in developing
Angola’s economy, while stripping it of its natural resources. When Portugal granted Angola its independence
in 1974, after a 13-year war for independence, the country was in ruins. The civil war that followed
independence made this situation worse. (Neto was the first President of the independent Angola.)
When we read Neto’s poems we much remember that they were written in the context of a country suffering
extreme poverty with few prospects of hope. His poetry calls for hope and for people to return to the ways of
thinking before the colonialists came to Angola.

Genre of the poem

The poem can be considered a modern/modernistic poem, Modern poetry is characterised by an open form
and free verse – quite different to poems with regular line length, meter and end rhyme.

The title: “African poem”

The title is very objective and does not give any clues about what will be shared about Africa in the poem.
About the poem
The poem is not only about the beauty of Africa but the difficulty and poverty of life under Colonial rule. The
poem celebrates the uniqueness of African people and Africa, as well as their strength and perseverance to
overcome many obstacles.
It is as if the poet is looking from a distance to begin with almost like a long shot in a film: of imbondeiro trees
on a horizon and burning palm trees. Then he brings our view closer to men carrying heavy loads of cassava to
the city of Bailundo. Now his view becomes even more intimate and even closer as he describes a man and
woman in a room. She is repairing her makeup; he is thinking about buying cutlery.
He then repeats the three images: On the horizon the burning trees and the imbondeiro with branches that look
like people with arms raised; on the road the men carrying their loads and on the bed the people. He
introduces an additional image of men playing marimba drums and the sound of the music in the air. He moves
from the general view of the landscape and then focuses in on specific individual human beings. This makes
the poem more personal and powerful.
The poet looking from a distance in the beginning at ‘the horizon', is a look at the effects that colonisation has
had on the country and its people, who were regarded as objects. He then brings our view closer to individuals
and becomes even more intimate and even closer in the bedroom - the effect colonisation has had on the
individual – poverty and hopelessness, YET still dreaming of getting dignity back.

Tone
The tone of this poem is fairly matter of fact, objective and neutral. The speaker does not
appear to pass judgement on what is observed and described. This allows the reader to make
his/her own judgements and interpretations of both Africa and the unfolding scene. However,
the careful selection of references to African images such as ‘imbondeiro’ (a symbol of African
strength) hints at the speaker’s feelings towards Africa and therefore manipulates the reader’s
interpretation. The poet uses subtlety rather than ranting and raving and using invective (insulting, abusive, or
highly critical language). His quiet voice is therefore very effective. It is a protest poem.

The Theme of the poem is the unique qualities of all that is African.
The repetition of prepositional phrases keeps the matter-of-fact tone and stresses that it is in the most
mundane of contexts that the strength (the ‘imbondeiro trees’), perseverance (‘the Bailundo porters groaning
under their loads’), the suffering (‘burnt palm trees’…’the woman…on the bed’...’the sleepless man’), and the
beauty of Africa (‘the sweet sweet-eyed mulatress’; the silhouette of the blacks at the drums’…the ‘burning
coals’)and her people are found. One does not have to search far for these qualities, as they permeate all
aspects of African life. It also makes one think of the effects of colonisation and what is “western civilisation”?

Stanza 1
The poem starts with an instruction to look ‘There on the horizon’ and experience the colours and smells of
Africa. One would expect the vibrant and peaceful setting of a typical African horizon at sunrise or sunset.
Instead, we are greeted with the aftermath of colonisation – the fires that have left devastation in its wake.
“dark silhouettes” (not just shadow in the sunrise/sunset but blackened by the fires. “… green smell of
burnt palm trees” – palm trees are a symbol of victory. In ancient Greek mythology, palm leaves were the
symbol of Nike, the winged goddess of victory. So, they have just gained their victory and their independence.
There is still the smell of burning as it is recent, but they can enjoy the typical scene in Africa as they have a
fresh perspective – they are free.

Stanza 2 &3
The speaker identifies the ‘groaning’ (onomatopoeia) porters and seems to sympathise with their burden as
they carry their load. The ‘mulatress’ woman is seen as innocent – ‘sweet-eyed’. However, being a ‘mixed-
breed’ hints that she may be the consequence of the white colonialists raping / having an affair with the black
slaves. The man is ‘sleepless’ as he is worried and anxious, pondering the ‘buying of knives and forks to
eat with at the table’ – indicating the poverty after colonisation, but also now that they are free, to restore
dignity, feeling like the man of the house and to feel empowered once again.

Stanza 4
Drums are a symbol of the rhythm of life - the beating heart central to survival. As the people come into one
‘rhythm’ – passion for their country and freedom – they begin to survive as a nation. The fire causes the
silhouettes of the drummers to reflect onto the sky with ‘arms raised’ in the ‘warm tune of the marimbas’.
The ‘warm tune of the marimbas’ suggests change and that Africa is NOW inviting and so the reader is
invited to join in the celebration and the diversity of Africa.
This is a similar image to that posed in stanza 1, suggesting that the people – like the imbondeiro trees – are
strong and they stand tall and proud as they celebrate their newly found independence and thus freedom.

Stanza 5 &6
The style and tone change here, becoming shorter and sterner as the people and the speaker begin to feel
safe, supported and hopeful in Africa. ‘On the road the porters…’ shows the speaker subtly influencing the
reader to observe and interpret Africa slightly differently – through the newfound lenses of freedom.
‘…burning coals…’ coals can only burn when together. Alone they grow cold and so as the people come
together to celebrate their passion for their country begins to burn brighter. The ‘fire’ is also ongoing and
described in the present tense, ‘consuming’ them and creating a ‘warm country of the horizons’. ‘warm’ is
used again (as in line 20) to show that the country has become inviting. Also notice how the ‘horizon’ in line 1
of stanza 1 has now in the final stanza become ‘horizons’ – plural – as it is now a country of new and many
opportunities.

Now answer the questions in your poetry book.

Also answer the following questions from a past paper:
Question 3
3.1 Refer to the Title ‘African Poem’. How does this Title set the tone for the poem? (2)
3.2 Explain why the figure of speech in lines 3-5 (‘and the dark …trees’) is so
effective? (2)
3.3 Explain how the theme of the poem is emphasised through the repetition of
imagery and prepositional phrases (‘in the air’ [lines 5 and 20]; ‘On the road’
[lines 6, 21]; ‘in the room’ [lines 9 and 22]; ‘on the bed’ [lines 13 and 23]).
Substantiate your response with close reference to the poem. (3)
3.4 This poem objectively portrays the strength, beauty and suffering of Africa.
Do you agree with this statement? Justify your response by referring to imagery
and/or diction in the poem. (3)

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THURSDAY
Mark and make corrections in your Literature book:
Turn to the back of your poetry book; mark and correct your answers for ‘African Poem’ – Refer to the
answers at the back of your poetry book (Pg. 202-203).
Now mark the past paper answers:
Question 3 Memo : African Poem – Agostinho Neto
3.1 The title is very objective and does not give any clues about what will be shared about Africa in the
poem.This title foreshadows the neutral and objective tone of the poem (2)
3.2 The personification of the trees compares the trees to people with their arms raised…in a gesture of
praise and surrender. This is effective as it emphasises how the rest of nature stands in awe of a
fire. Although strong and rooted, even the baobab tree surrenders its foliage to the fire, and all that
remains will be a blackened trunk and canopy of bare branches. (2)

3.3 The theme of the poem is the unique qualities of all that is African. The repetition of prepositional
phrases keeps the matter-of-fact tone and stresses that it is in the most mundane of contexts that the
strength (the ‘imbondeiro trees’), perseverance (‘the Bailundo porters groaning under their loads’), the
suffering (‘burnt palm trees’…’the woman…on the bed’...’the sleepless man’), and the beauty of Africa
(‘the sweet sweet-eyed mulatress’; the silhouette of the blacks at the drums’…the ‘burning coals’)and her
people are found. One does not have to search far for these qualities, as they permeate all aspects of
African life. (3)

3.4 YES- the beauty of the people (the ‘woman on the bed’), and the natural phenomena(the ‘Imbondeiro
trees’; the ‘burning coals’), as well as the suffering (the ‘…porters groaning under their load’; the ‘smell
of burnt palm trees’) are all understated, to imply that beauty alongside suffering are every-day
occurrences in Africa. 

NO- it is not so objective…This use of emotive symbols (‘the imbondeiro trees’) and diction (‘the green
smell of burnt palms”) and the pathos of images such as the ‘mulatress’ lightening and westernizing her
natural complexion so that she would not be vilified for her mixed race heritage, all subtly manipulate the
reader into feeling compassion for Africa and her people, so the tone is instead one of subtle
subjectivity. 

ALLOW FOR A MIXED (YES&NO response if the argument is well-substantiated.  (3)
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