Sheila Cussons - Religie

Sheila Cussons word beskou as ʼn religieuse digter. Alhoewel haar gedigte ʼn verskeidenheid temas en motiewe bevat, word sy steeds bestempel as die eerste Afrikaanse digter wat haar kunstenaarskap koppel aan die soektog van God (Van Aardt 1990). As gevolg hiervan is mistisisme die dryfveer agter Cussons se religieuse poësie. Dit is veral opmerkend in aspekte van haar poësie soos die soektog na God, transfigurasie en ook teofanie. Die soektog na God word agterna gesit deur die veronderstelling dat God homself openbaar in die alledaagse werklikheid. Dit is veral in hierdie sienlike werklikheid waar Cussons die natuur gebruik om die bo-natuurlike uit te beeld. Transfigurasie en teofanie handel oor persoonlike gedaanteverwisseling en eenwording met God waarna die mens streef. Hierdie opstel sal handel oor die wyse waarop Cussons haar religieuse poësie hanteer. Dit sal te werke gaan deur die mistieke aspekte van Cussons se werk te bespreek deur te verwys na relevante gedigte. Die gebruik van mistisisme is ʼn belangrike eienskap in Cussons se werk, die soektog na God, transfigurasie en teofanie sal dien as sentrale redeneringspunt vir die ondersteuning van mistisisme in Cussons se poësie.

In die gedig “Tot...” kom die soektog na God baie sterk voor. Dit is hier waar die mistisisme se invloed op Cussons se poësie ervaar kan word. Die gedig handel oor God wat die dryfkrag, “gis”, is agter die spreker se gedagtes in reël een, dit is hierdie gedagtes wat dan veroorsaak dat die spreker met meer entoesiasme, “dansender” reël twee, dig en bid totdat die dig en bid een handeling word, “tot die een in die ander oorloop” reël drie (Janse van Rensburg 2012). Met die vereenselwiging van bid en dig is die suggestie dat die “dansender” verwys na ʼn religieuse dans. Hierdie religieuse dans dui dan op die “uitdrukking van godsdienstige emosies” en ook “om tot eenheid met die godheid te raak”. Die “dansender dig en bid” is wat die mistieke teofanie bewerkstellig (Janse van Rensburg 2012).

Bid is die mees religieuse handeling, dit word gesien as die direkte betreding van die teenwoordigheid van God. Die spreker/Cussons wat gesien word as die mistikus vervul nie in hierdie gedig die rol van bidder nie. Die bidder wil erkenning kry, maar die mistikus wil eerder erkenning aan God gee (Van Aardt 1990). Die teofanie van bid en dig word deur die spreker/Cussons dan beskou as ʼn mistieke handeling. Die “soeke” in reël vier word dan ’n sinoniem vir “bid”. Daar word aktief vir God gesoek deur die mistieke handelinge te gebruik, en Hy is dan “reeds gevonde” deur die handeling van “dig”. In reël ses word daar gepraat van “Godspraak in tale”. Hierdie verwys na die twee handelinge (bid en dig) wat uit “een Ondergrond” bestaan. Hierdie ondergrond word met ’n hoofletter geskryf, daarom verteenwoordig dit God. Dit wil sê dat God deur die digter praat; die openbaring van God (Janse van Rensburg 2012).

Die gedig “Glo ek...” kan bydra tot die bespreking van transfigurasie en teofanie. Hierdie gedig handel oor die gedaanteverwisseling van die self en ook die eenwording met God. Reël een “… dat dit ín in ons sit” verduidelik dat daar al reeds ’n onbewuste innerlike drang is wat ʼn eenwording of gedaanteverwisseling vereis met God. Dit word vergelyk met ʼn pêrel in reël twee, iets wat oor ʼn lang tydperk groei vanaf iets kleins. Reël drie en vier verwys na die Bybel. Die verwysings dui op wonderwerke wat volgens die spreker deur “ons” gedoen wil word. Reël ses verduidelik dat ons wil “transfigureer” om meer soos God te wees, om te kan doen wat Hy doen.

Happold (1963) verduidelik dat die ervaring van mistisisme ʼn direkte ervaring is van die teenwoordigheid van God. Hierdie mistieke ervaring word eerder gevind in die gedig “Tot...”. In die gedig “Glo ek...” word daar eerder die mistieke ervaring van kennis en verstand gevind. Happold (1963) verduidelik hierdie ervaring as ʼn inherente drang wat die mensdom het om die geheime van die heelal te begryp. Dit kan dan geredeneer word dat in die gedig “Glo ek...” wil die transfigurasie en teofanie juis plaasvind om nie nader aan God te wees nie maar om meer soos Hy te wees om die inherente drang wat in die mensdom woel te bevredig.

Die gedig “Corpus Christi” handel oor die soektog en die vind van God. Hier word redelik gebruik gemaak van natuurbeelde.

            I

            Eensaam vol poësie hoor ek die wind

            in die wilde populiere wat donker tuimel

            teen ʼn helder naglug, en druppels

            skuins reën sketter oor die ruite

Hierdie natuurbeelde in deel I verwys na die komende proses wat die spreker/Cussons sal ondergaan. Mistisisme veronderstel dat God Homself op besondere maniere aan mense sal openbaar. Die spreker maak homself/haarself oop vir hierdie openbaring deur te fokus op die natuur. Die spreker/Cussons “raak [dan] los” in reël vyf. Hierdie dui op ʼn soort sintuiglikgeoriënteerde spirituele bevryding. Volgens Janse van Rensburg (2012) is daar “in die ware mistikus ʼn uitbreiding van die normale bewussyn, ʼn loslaat van latente magte en ʼn verbreding van visie”. Hierdie bevryding veronderstel dat die mistikus die werklikheid agter die alledaagse werklikheid kan waarneem. Dit is dan wat die spreker/Cussons uitoefen deur na die natuur te kyk.

            II

            Wat ruis in die donker flikkerende bome

            in die wind, en glans in die driftige vlae

            van die reën, roer in die wortel, stoot

            in die sap? – besige Christus, Jý.

Hier in deel II is waar die spreker/Cussons vir Christus dan waarneem in die “donker flikkerende bome” reël agt. Christus word hier raakgesien in die natuur. Dit kan dus geredeneer word dat vir die spreker/Cussons is die sleutel na die vind van God deur die natuur met ʼn mistieke proses en ervaring.

In die drie gedigte wat hierbo bespreek is, kan mistisisme duidelik gevind word. Dit is duidelik dat mistieke aspekte die dryfveer is agter Cussons se religieuse poësie. Cussons se religieuse poësie word dus geskryf in ʼn mistieke dimensie. Dit handel nie oor die oppervlakkige loof en prys van God nie, maar delg dieper in die omgewings van wie God is en ook waar Hy is. Cussons se soektog vereis dikwels transfigurasie en teofanie om nader aan God te wees en die innerlike drange van die mensdom te bevredig.

Bibliografie

Cussons, S., 1978. Die swart kombuis. Kaapstad: Tafelberg.

Cussons, S., 1990. Die knetterende woord. Kaapstad: Tafelberg.

Happold, F. C., 1963. Mysticism. A study and an anthology. Middlesex: Harmondsworth.

Janse van Rensburg, C., 2012. Die mistieke dimensie en kontemplatiewe aard van die kreatiewe daad by Sheila Cussons. Litnet Akademies, 9(1), pp. 273-300.

Van Aardt, C. P., 1990. Die verwysing by Sheila Cussons. Ongepubliseerde DLitt-Proefskrif ed. Pretoria: Universiteit van Suid-Afrika.

Is Afrikaans die taal van die onderdrukker?

“Julle sal leer om gehoorsaam te wees,
gehoorsaam en onderdanig.
En julle sal die Taal leer gebruik,
onderdanig sal julle dit gebruik
want in ons lê die monde
met die gif in die klop en die spoel van die hart”

~ Breyten Breytenbach

Die vraag of Afrikaans die taal van die onderdrukker is, is nie ʼn maklike vraag om te beantwoord nie. Afrikaans het ʼn sekere stigma as gevolg van Suid-Afrika se geskiedenis en die aksies van “Die Volk” wat eksklusief Afrikaans was. Die ideologieë oor Afrikaans as taal van die onderdrukker duur steeds voort alhoewel Afrikaanssprekendes al vir amper twintig jaar nie meer in die magsposisie is nie. Stigmatisering vind steeds plaas al het tye verander. Die probleem met Afrikaans wat gestigmatiseer word, is dat dit plaasvind as gevolg van ʼn klein groep “Afrikaners” in die verlede en wat ook op hulle gebaseer word.


Gedurende apartheid was Afrikaans op die res van Suid-Afrika afgedwing. Andries Treurnicht, die Minister van Bantu Onderwys in 1976, het Afrikaans as ’n skool taal op swart leerlinge afgedwing. Daar was groot verwagtinge van die nie blanke populasie in Suid-Afrika om Afrikaans te praat. Die rede hiervoor was omdat dit kommunikasie en beheersing sou verseker vir die blanke mense.  Hierdie verwagtinge het proteste en onrus in Suid-Afrika veroorsaak. Dit is vererger deur die beleid van die Nasionale Party wat gelyktydig Afrikaans bevorder en ook die onreg van apartheid met Afrikaans assosieer. Mettertyd is die stigma, vroeër verbind aan Engels, vervang met “Afrikaans is die taal van die onderdrukker”.


Die term segregasie was eers gebruik vir apartheid. Dit het later verander omdat die benadeelde bevolking nie van die term gehou het nie. Dominee Strydom het toe aan die term “apartheid” gedink en dit geïmplementeer. Hierdie term wat ’n Afrikaanse woord is, het oor die wêreld versprei en dit het gemaak dat die wêreld hierdie taal verafsku en ook sy sprekers. Die konnotasie word vandag nog gemaak van taal, spreker en dade. Die probleem is dat blanke Suid-Afrikaners net ʼn klein groepie mense is wat Afrikaans praat. Daar is 6.1 miljoen mense wat Afrikaans as huistaal praat en net 2.5 miljoen van hierdie mense is blanke mense (Stats SA 2012). Die diversiteit van Afrikaanse sprekers word dikwels geïgnoreer wanneer die onderwerp bespreek word. Die Afrikaanssprekende "kleurlinge" wat ook slagoffers was van apartheid was in die meerderheid teenoor blanke Afrikaanssprekendes wat apartheid ondersteun het. Dit word ook geïgnoreer dat goedkoop swart arbeid ten volle uitgebuit was deur nywerhede en mynbou, wat oorheers was deur Engelssprekende eienaars. Laastens word daar ook nie kennis geneem van die feit dat daar nog altyd 'n klein, vokale Afrikaans sprekende opposisie teen apartheid was nie.

Daar was ʼn paar Afrikaanse skrywers en digters wat Afrikaans gebruik het teen Apartheid. Adam Small is ʼn bruin Suid-Afrikaanse skrywer wat in die Swartbewussynsbeweging betrokke was. Hy is bekend vir sy werke in Afrikaans wat gehandel het oor rassediskriminasie en hy het ook satiriese werke geskryf oor die politieke omstandighede (van Zyl 2012). Breyten Breytenbach het ook ʼn rol gespeel in anti-apartheid bewegings. Breytenbach was teen die apartheid regering en het dit in sy werk weerspieël. Ingrid Jonker was dalk een van die belangrikste anti-apartheid skrywers. Nes Breytenbach was sy gekant teen die apartheid beleid en het dit deeglik in haar werk weerspieël. Haar gedig “Die kind (wat doodgeskiet is deur soldate by Nyanga)” was een van die mees hartroerende gedigte in daardie tyd. Dit is ook die gedig wat Nelson Mandela voorgelees het, in Afrikaans, tydens sy toespraak by die opening van die eerste demokraties verkiesde parlement op 24 Mei 1994.

Daar was dus redelike opposisie teen die apartheid beleid. Opposisie vanaf blanke, bruin en swart skrywers wat Afrikaans as metode van verset gebruik het. Afrikaans was gebruik deur albei groepe, die onderdrukkers en die verlossers. Dit is dan verkeerd om Afrikaans net met die een groep te assosieer. Marcel Bas meen dat Afrikaans skade lei deur historiese gebeurtenisse en groepe wat met die taal geassosieer word. ’n Taal moet objektief bly en nie “gestraf” word as gevolg van sy sprekers se aksies nie. Bas meen ook dat Afrikaans nie benadeel moet word as gevolg van geskiedenis nie omdat die vroeëre geskiedenis van Afrikaans ’n belangrike rol speel in taal ontwikkeling aangesien Afrikaans sy oorsprong vind uit ’n Europese taal. Bas vra dan ook die vraag hoekom Afrikaans gestigmatiseer word omdat dit die taal van Afrikaners was waar Duits nie so ’n negatiewe konnotasie het nie alhoewel dit die taal van die Nazi’s was. (Bas 1999)

Daar is verskillende opinies oor die bestaan van Afrikaans. Sommiges voel dat Afrikaans gelos moet word sodat dit kan uitsterf omdat dit ʼn eienskap en metode van onderdrukking was gedurende apartheid. Ander sal weer veg vir Afrikaans se oorlewing. Afrikaanssprekendes in Suid-Afrika is oor die algemeen ’n baie trotse groep mense. Afrikaans is deel van almal se identiteit en dit speel ’n groot rol in hierdie mense se lewens. Die vooruitgang van Afrikaans is vanselfsprekend en Afrikaanssprekendes werk hard om die vordering van Afrikaans te verseker. Die Afrikaanse Taalraad (ATR) het in September 2003 tot stand gekom. Dit tree in belang van Afrikaans by die regering, die burgerlike samelewing, die media en ander rolspelers op (Die Afrikaanse Taalraad 2008). Hierdie is een voorbeeld van die bemagtiging, bevordering en beskerming van Afrikaans.

Die gedig “taalstryd” van Breyten Breytenbach is geskryf in die stem van die Afrikaner wat die onderdruktes aanspreek. Die gedig weerspieël Afrikaner Nasionalisme in ʼn baie aggressiewe beeld. Hierdie gedig toon ook die verhouding tussen die ontmagtiging van die meerderheid van Suid-Afrika se bevolking en die implementering van die aanleer van Afrikaans. Die gedig is ʼn voorbeeld van die bevooroordeelde idee van Afrikaans en blanke Afrikaners wat vandag steeds ontstaan.

Die probleem is dat die negatiewe invloede van Afrikaner geskiedenis ʼn impak op blanke Afrikaanssprekendes het. Die nuwe generasie wil nie in die oë van die wêreld geassosieer word met die vorige “Afrikaner” groepe nie. In die geval verwerp hulle totaal die Afrikaanse taal en weier om dit verder te praat (Jacobs 2013). Afrikaans het dus nog ʼn lang pad om te stap voordat dit herstel sal word. Afrikaans is vir baie mense nog die herinnering aan ʼn vorige lewe wat vergeet wil word. Dit is te verstaande dat mense dit sal wil verwerp. Die vorige groep Afrikaners waarmee Afrikaans vandag nog geassosieer word, is besig om te verminder en te verdwyn. Daar sal ongelukkig altyd rassisme wees en ook daarmee rassediskriminasie, maar die nuwe generasie van Afrikaners is anders. Dit is dus nie regverdig om dieselfde etiket aan jonger generasies te plaas net op grond van die taal wat hulle praat nie. Dit is ook nie net blankes wat Afrikaanssprekendes is nie, daar is kleurlinge, swart mense en nog vele ander rasse wat Afrikaanse sprekers is. Afrikaans moet nie gestigmatiseer word as gevolg van ʼn klein persentasie van die sprekers se dade nie. Afrikaans is nie die taal van “Die Volk” nie, dit is nie die onderdrukker se taal nie. Afrikaans is ʼn Suid-Afrikaanse taal met Europese afkoms en op die ou end bly dit net ʼn taal.

Bronnelys

Bas, M. 1999. De Roepstem: Afrikaans en Nederlands wereldwijd. P.C. Paardekooper: "ANC is anti-Nederlands". Beskikbaar: E:\Afr en Ned\Sosio-linguistiek\De Roepstem - Mening van taalkundige PC Paardekooper.html [2013, Oktober 21]

Breytenbach, B. 1985. Lewendood. Kaapstad: Printpak Kaap.

Die Afrikaanse Taalraad. 2008. Die ontstaan van die ATR. [ONLINE] Available at: http://afrikaansetaalraad.co.za/wie-is-die-atr/ontstaan/. [Accessed 14 November 13].

Jacobs, J.U. 2013. Jong Suid-Afrikaners en kulturele (wan)praktyke: Verbreking van die stilte in onlangse prosa. Literator: Journal of Literary Criticism, comparative linguistics and literary studie, 34.1 (2013). Academic OneFile. Web. 15 Oct. 2013.

Stats SA. 2012. Cencus in Brief. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.statssa.gov.za/Census2011/Products/Census_2011_Census_in_brief.pdf. [Accessed 14 November 13].

van Zyl, W. 2012. Adam Small, Kanna en 'daardie morele moment'. Tydskrif vir Letterkunde. 49(1): p40.

John Donne

John Donne

In John Donne’s “The Sun Rising” and his sonnet “Death be not proud,” personification is key to the development of a central conceit in the poem and the formulation of an argument.

This essay will explore the poem “The Sun Rising” and the sonnet 10 “Death be not proud” by John Donne. The essay will also answer certain questions regarding the poem and sonnet with the focus on the idea that personification is key to the development of a central conceit and the formulation of an argument. The essay will answer questions such as; what is the argument of the poem and how is it developed, who is the speaker and what is his/her situation, does gender of the speaker matter, who is the speaker addressing, what is conveyed about the speakers attitude and finally what has been the critical response to Donne’s poetry. This essay will conclude the importance of personification in developing a central conceit and also in the formulation of an argument in Donne’s poetry.

According to Grierson metaphysical poetry is poetry that has been inspired by philosophical conceptions of the universe and also the role of the human spirit in existence (3). Gardner means that metaphysical poetry is the indulgence in “nice speculations of philosophy” in unusual contexts (xix). It can be seen that metaphysical poetry has strong connections with philosophy. If this context of metaphysical poetry is put together with the work of John Donne, then it is easier to understand why Donne makes use of personification and why it plays such a significant role in his poetry. Donne’s work can be seen as written work with a philosophical view. Eliot signifies that it is difficult to define metaphysical poetry, but that John Donne often employs devices considered characteristically metaphysical (59-60). Thus Donne’s work can be seen as Metaphysical poetry and Donne himself a metaphysical poet.

The Sun Rising

In the poem “The Sun Rising” the speaker is a man who is in love with a women whilst lying in bed with her. In this case the speaker has to be male because the “prescribed” gender role of that time only allows the speaker to be male. The speaker could possibly be John Donne himself because the way the speaker speaks is consistent with the other poems of the poet. The speaker is addressing the Sun that is rising because it is disturbing the blissful night that the speaker and his lover had.

The argument that the speaker is making is that the Sun is disturbing their night. The speaker wants the Sun to go away and bother other people, but speaker shifts the idea from that to the importance of him and his lover and their room. The speaker then claims that the bed is the centre of the universe and that if the Sun only shine there then it is shining on the whole world.

In the first stanza the idea is that the Sun is bothering the speaker. This can be seen in the condescending way the speaker addresses the Sun and also in the rhetorical questions being asked “Why dost thou thus … call on us?” (2-3) and “Must to thy motions lovers’ seasons run?” (4), the latter meaning; do even the lovers have to do what you say? The speaker then tells the Sun to go bother other people e.g. “school boys”, “prentices”, “court-huntsmen” and “country ants”. The meaning of country ants would be farm workers. At the end of the first stanza, the speaker makes a romantic gesture. In line nine “Love, all alike, no season knows, nor clime,” which means that love never changes and then in line ten “Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time” which means he has eternal love for his lover.

In the second stanza the idea shifts from the Sun to the speaker himself. The speaker starts by saying that the Sun isn’t as powerful as he thinks he is. The speaker can “… eclipse and cloud them [Suns’ beams] with a wink” (13). The speaker makes yet another romantic gesture by saying that he wouldn’t wink because “[he] would not lose her sight so long” (14). The speaker then goes on to demonstrate his power and importance. He states that he has taken “Indias” and also that all the kings “here in one bed lay” (20). This means that all of the undiscovered riches, the Indies, and all of the kings are actually in his world.

In the third stanza “She is all states, and all princes, I, Nothing else is” (21-22) suggests that his lover is the lands and he has a right to take it (her). Furthermore he is also saying that nothing else exists, it’s just him and his lover. In line 26 he says that the whole world has been contracted into their bedroom, thus the importance of the whole world is now their bedroom. That is why he says “Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere” (29). He ends by saying “This bed thy centre is, these walls, thy sphere” (30). This last line means exactly what he has been saying the whole time, that their bedroom is the centre of the universe, the most important thing.

The speaker in the poem starts the poem with “Busy old fool, unruly sun” (1). The attitude that is conveyed here from the speaker is condescending. “Saucy, pedantic wretch” (5) is another condescending line. The speaker also uses certain words that commands the Sun, word like “go” (5), “look” (16) and “ask” (19). The speaker addresses the Sun in a very condescending and disrespectful way.

Death be not proud

The speaker in the sonnet could be a woman or a man who is addressing Death. He/she is confronting death directly and in doing so does not show any fear. The speaker tells death exactly what he/she is feeling. In this case gender doesn’t play any significant role. The speaker could be male or female.

In the sonnet “Death be not proud” there are several arguments being made. In the octave there are two arguments; the first is that death brings people a delightful rest, the second is that all of the best people die young, this makes death seem somewhat attractive. In the sestet there are three arguments being made; the first is that death is a slave to “fate, chance, kings, and desperate men” (9), the second is that death is associated with atrocities such as “poison, war, and sickness” (10), and the third is that death has no reason to be proud because it isn’t eternal, death is only a “short sleep” (13).

In the first two lines the speaker tells Death not to be proud, even though many people fear Death “though some have callèd thee Mighty and dreadful” (1-2), the speaker says that Death is not to be feared. The speaker means that Death thinks it is the victor, but he doesn’t really win when he kills people “For, those, whom thou think’st, thou dost overthrow, Die not” (3-4). The speaker then goes on to compare Death with “rest” and “sleep” which is something that brings humans “Much pleasure” (6). In the last two lines of the octave the speaker describes how the best people die young “And soonest our best men with thee do go” (7). This is what gives Death an attractive side. “Rest of their bones, and soul’s delivery” (8) here the speaker acknowledges what Death is doing, letting their bones rest and giving their souls over to heaven.

The sestet begins to explain that Death is nothing more than a slave to “fate, chance, kings, and desperate men” (9) and that Death is also associated with the things we deem bad like “poison, war, and sickness” (10). The speaker also then says that Death isn’t even needed when there is drugs and magic charms to help people sleep “And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well” (11) and that it is even better than death “And better then thy stroke” (12). The speaker asks Death after that remark “why swell’st thou then?” (12) Meaning why are you boasting then? The last two lines the explain that Death is only a short sleep and when the person awakens then they will live for eternity and the Death will be no more:

One short sleep past, we wake eternally,

And death shall be no more, Death thou shalt die. (13-14)

There are certain lines that convey the attitude of the speaker towards the addressee. The sonnet “Death be not proud” starts defiant and patronising, this can be seen in the lines:

Death be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so, (1-2)

The attitude is also very combative and this can be seen in the line “nor yet canst thou kill me” (4). The poem consists of subtle arguments being made and then it has certain bursts of emotion. The ending has a self-assured triumph that humans prevail over death.

Critical Response to Donne’s Poetry

Eliot says that the poetry of John Donne is of late Elizabethan and that the feeling of his work is very close to that of Chapman’s. “In Chapman especially there is a direct sensuous apprehension of thought, or a recreation of thought into feeling, which is exactly what we find in Donne[‘s] [work]” (Eliot, 63). Eliot also means that both poets are concerned with the perpetuating of love by offspring (63).

Willmott means that Donne always portrays his emotions in his work, either through writing “whining poetry” or “comically exaggerates his feelings as in ‘The Computation’” (12). Willmott also describes Donne’s work as going back to an earlier tradition of Ovid’s elegies, which is sexually frank, where he views love with cynicism (12) and still keeps it “strikingly original” (12). Donne’s work also has a certain variety and can speak to readers in a tender simplicity (Willmott, 12):

Sweetest love, I do not go,

For weariness of thee. (‘Song’, 1-2)

As a twenty-first century reader of John Donne’s two poems, I would respond to these poems by saying that it is very profound. This could be mostly because of the 17^th century English which it is written in. But it is also very interesting because the thoughts of literary men from that time can be seen in their poetry. The philosophical ideas and how they perceived the world is right there for us to study. The poem “The Sun Rising” is very intellectual. We have made significant advances in all aspects of human life, but it is amazing that a poem from the 1600s could still be seen as something intellectual.

The sonnet “Death be not proud” still relates to some of the Christian views of today. It is the belief that death is only the next step to eternal life. These views are strongly represented in the poem and the way in which John Donne writes the poem makes you believe that death can be conquered.

In both of John Donne’s poems personification is used. In “The Sun Rising” it is the sun that is personified and is addressed, in “Death be not proud” it is death that is personified and the speaker addresses it. In both of these poems it is because of the personified thing that a central conceit can develop and that an argument can be formulated. In both poems the personified things are being challenged. The attitudes toward these things are also condescending and disrespectful. The two poems are very different in nature. “The Sun Rising” is more of a love poem and has a certain pompousness where the sonnet “Death be not proud” is more a threatening and disapproval poem.

These two poems of John Donne is certainly metaphysical poems. It can be seen in the philosophical ways of thinking and also in the way in which the personification is used. There are certain characteristics that can be seen in the poems which goes along with the time in which it was written for example the knowledge of astrology, cosmology and cartography in the poem “The Sun Rising” and also the role of religion and the perception of life in the sonnet “Death be not proud”. The poetry of John Donne is aspiring even though it was written several hundred years ago. It is interesting to see the start of the enlightenment reflected in poetry.

Bibliography

Eliot, T S. Selected Prose of T.S. Eliot. Ed. Frank Kermode. London: Faber and Faber Limited, 1975.

Gardner, Helen. The Metaphysical Poets. London: Oxford University Press, 1961.

Grierson, Herbert J.C. Metaphysical Lyrics and Poems of the Seventeenth Century. Ed. Alastair Fowler. London: Oford University Press, 1995.

Willmott, Richard. Four Metaphysical Poets: An anthology of poetry by Donne, Herbert, Marvell and Vaughan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985.

“Poem for My Mother”

“Poem for My Mother” by Jennifer Davids

Poem for my mother

Jennifer Davids

That isn’t everything, you said

on the afternoon I brought a poem

to you hunched on the washtub

with your hands

the shriveled

burnt granadilla

Skin of your hands

covered by foam.

And my words

slid like a ball

of hard blue soap

into the tub

to be grabbed and used by you

to rub the clothes.

A poem isn’t all

there is to life, you said

with your blue ringed gaze

scanning the page

once looking over my shoulder

and back at the immediate

dirty water

and my words

being clenched

smaller and

smaller.

The poem “Poem for My Mother” was written by Jennifer Davids. Davids, born in 1947 in Cape Town, attended Harold Cressy High School and later trained as a teacher at Hewat Training College where she specialized in arts. She later also taught in Langa, a black township in Cape Town. Living in the Apartheid era of South-Africa, the effects and influences thereof can be seen in Davids’ poetry where she expresses political awareness. “Poem for My Mother” was published in 1974 in Searching for Words but it was written much earlier in Davids’ teenage years. This essay will analyse the poem and reveal the topic, the form and the themes of the poem.

The title of the poem indicates that it is a poem written for or dedicated to the daughters’ mother. This indicates that there is a certain love and sincerity that the daughter wants to show through an affectionate poem. In the first stanza the first two lines indicate that the mother shows disregard for poetry, “That isn’t everything” (line 1) when the daughter presents the poem to her mother. In lines three and four we can see that the mother is busy with household chores, she is busy washing the laundry by hand. The mother is described as being “hunched” on the washtub in line three which indicates that the mother is tired and has spent a great amount of time doing the laundry. From line four to line eight there is a figurative description of the mothers’ hands. This metaphor that compares the mothers’ hands to a “shrivelled burnt granadilla skin” (lines 5-6) describes the age and harsh labour intensive life of the mother. In the last line of the stanza, line eight, it says “covered by foam”. This also indicates why the mothers’ hands are all shrivelled up.

In the second stanza the focus is returned to the poem the daughter brought her mother. Here in lines 9-11, the words of the poem are compared to a sliding ball of hard blue soap. This figurative creation indicates that the mother does not understand or grasp the words and the feelings that are expressed in the poem. It can be seen as sliding through her hands and not grasped. Lines 13-14 shows some despair the daughter is feeling because the poem is not read and appreciated by the mother, but rather “grabbed and used” (line 13).

In stanza one and two it is made clear that the mother does not understand and grasp the idea of poetry, she does not understand and grasp the words and emotions that are expressed through the daughters’ poem. It can only be speculated that the mother has grown up in a very different and restricted environment. The mother sees labour and tasks as more of importance than the expression of feelings and emotions through creative writing. The mother has no regard for poetry. The difference between the mother and daughter are further emphasized through the contras “your hands” in line four and “my words” in line nine. This contra suggests that there is a gap and different point of views between the mother and daughter. The mother can be seen as a more practical person, where the daughter is more of an intellectual.

In the third stanza the mothers’ blunt rejection of the poem is again repeated “A poem isn’t all there is to life” (lines 15-16). This shows how offended and affected the daughter is by the rejection of the poem. Line 17 again refers to the mothers’ hard life. “your blue ringed gaze”. This indicates that the mother has rings under her eyes which are from tiredness or that it is blue from being physically abused. This line holds some irony because of the colour of the soap and the colour of the mothers’ gaze which is both blue. In lines 18-19 there is a description of how the mother is reading the poem. She is described as “scanning” (line 18) and “looking over my shoulder” (line 19). This indicates that the mother simply glances at the poem and is not really paying attention. She also looks over the shoulder and is not standing beside her daughter to show interest or intimacy. Lines 20-21 show that the mother immediately turns her focus to the dirty water. The word “immediate” (line 20) indicates the mothers’ urgency to finish the laundry. This act of the mother is a hurtful one as could be seen in the reaction of the daughter in the last stanza.

The last stanza, lines 22-25, conveys the daughters’ sadness and hurt at seeing the poem to be disregarded. “and my words being clenched smaller and smaller” (lines 22-25) reveals the disappointment, deflation and dismay of the daughter.

The poem describes a very tender moment between a mother and her daughter. The fact that the daughter had written a poem for her mother indicates that they have a very close relationship, or that this is an attempt to mend the lack of communication in their relationship. It can be seen that they are a poor working class household, “Blue ringed eyes” (line 17), doing laundry by hand and also hands that are worn by the work in lines three to eight. The poem is offered to the mother with great enthusiasm, excitement and appreciation. The speaker wants the mother to discontinue the chores and rather read and appreciate the poem written for her. Unfortunately the mother does not have the time or an understanding for poetry. The mother is dismissive, too busy and not impressed by the poem. Poetry is seen by the mother as a luxury and she would rather focus on the practicalities of life. The tone of the poem is of disappointment and deflation. The theme links the mother-daughter relationship with the lack of communication.

In the poem there are irregular line lengths, no punctuation and also run-on lines. The poem has a conversational tone to it because the speaker is actually addressing the mother. There are several metaphors that are used through the poem and also an instance of irony. The form of the last stanza compliments the meaning and adds to the effect; it is a small and short stanza which indicates the daughters’ words as losing their meaning and being squeezed into nothingness.

The poem describes a moment that should have been a very loving and tender one between a mother and her daughter. Unfortunately the moment is ruined because of social class factors. This poem was written during apartheid and in a way the effects thereof can be seen in this poem. A typical poor and working class family is portrayed that enjoys no simple luxuries like a washing machine and which also indicates the issue of illiteracy, where the child has surpassed the parent in the form of education and culture and can be regarded as an intellectual. 

Die Opkoms van “Black Power” in die VSA

Die Teenstrydige Idees en Sienings van dr M.L. King en S. Carmichael

In Junie 1966 het Martin Luther King en ’n jong Stokely Carmichael saam met honderde ander mense wat deel vorm van mense regte bewegings gemarsjeer deur Mississippi op pad na Jackson.[1] Dit is hier waar mense regoor Amerika vir die eerste keer die term “Swart Mag” gehoor het wat Stokely Carmichael gebruik het in publiek en wat ook regstreeks uitgesaai was op televisie. Hierdie term het golwe van opgewondenheid en vrees deur Amerika gestuur. Carmichael se woorde was “When you talk about Black Power you talk about bringing this country to its knees any time it messes with a black man ... any white man in this country knows about power. He knows what white power is and he ought to know what black power is”.[2] ’n Geskiedkundige, Peniel E. Joseph, het bewys dat “Swart Mag” gedurende die 1950’s en 1960’s as gevolg van groot gebeure ontwikkel het. Hierdie gebeure was onder andere die Bandung Konferensie, die Kubaanse Rewolusie en episodes van Dekolonisering in Afrika.[3] Hierdie gebeure het aktiviste gemotiveer om meer aggressiewe mense regte strategieë te volg en so was “Swart Mag” gebore.

Stokely Carmichael en Martin Luther King het uit verskillende agtergronde gekom en het totaal van mekaar verskil, maar tog was hulle albei swart en benadeel in Amerika.Martin Luther King het tog ’n ander idee gehad oor “Swart Mag” en ook die rol wat dit kan vervul. King het op die “Swart Mag” onderwerp gesê “Black power is a cry of disappointment. It was born from the wounds of despair. It is a cry of daily hurt and persistent pain. The call for Black Power is a reaction to the failure of white power. Yet there is no salvation for the Negro through isolation. Effective political power for Negroes cannot come through separatism. Probably the most destructive feature of Black Power is its unconscious and often conscious call for retaliatory violence. Are we seeking power for power’s sake? Or are we seeking to make the world and our nation better places to live? If we seek the latter, violence can never provide the answer”.[4] Dit kan gesien word dat King en Carmichael verskillende sienings gehad het oor “Black Power” en hoe dit gebruik moes word. Hierdie opstel sal die opkoms van “Black Power” verduidelik met oog op die aanhalings van Martin Luther King en Stokely Carmichael en ook hoe hierdie twee persone tot teenstrydige idees en sienings gekom het om ’n verskil te maak in die menseregte bewegings.

Carmichael was gebore in Trinidad, Spanje waar hy en sy ouers later in 1954 op die ouderdom van 13 na America geïmmigreer het. Hy en sy ouers het in Bronx gewoon in die buurt Morris Park, waar die meerderheid inwoners uit Italianers en Jode bestaan het. Twee jaar later in 1956 was Carmichael betrokke by ʼn bende, The Morris Park Dukes, waar hy die enigste swart bende lid was.[5] Hy het in dieselfde jaar ook die toelatingstoets geslaag vir die gesogte Bronx High School of Science. In dié hoërskool was Carmichael blootgestel aan ʼn hele ander sosiale stelsel, dit was die kinders van die New York stad se wit liberale elites.[6] Carmichael was gewild onder sy klasmaats, maar hy was altyd bewus van die rasse verskille wat hom geskei het van die ander. In latere jare het Carmichael hierdie vriendskappe soos volg beskryf; “Now that I realize how phony they all were, how I hate myself for it. Being liberal was an intellectual game with these cats. They were still white, and I was black”.[7]

Alhoewel Carmichael bewus was van die Civil Rights Movement, het hy eers jare later self besluit om deel te word daarvan nadat hy een aand op televisie beeldmateriaal gesien het van ʼn sit-in. “When I first heard about the Negroes sitting in at lunch counters down South, I thought they were just a bunch of publicity hounds. But one night when I saw those young kids on TV, getting back up on the lunch counter stools after being knocked off them, sugar in their eyes, ketchup in their hair—well, something happened to me. Suddenly I was burning”.[8] Hy het toe aangesluit by die Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) en deelgeneem aan sit-ins in Virginia en South-Carolina.

In 1960 het Carmichael as ʼn stellêre leerling klaargemaak met hoërskool en verskeie beurse ontvang om by van die beste universiteite in die land te gaan studeer, maar Carmichael het dit egter van die hand gewys en besluit om by die geskiedkundige swart universiteit Howard te studeer in Washington, D.C.[9] In hierdie tyd het Carmichael al hoe meer aktief geraak by die Civil Rights Movement en het as eerstejaar in 1961 aan sy eerste “Freedom Ride” deelgeneem. Dit was ʼn geïntegreerde bus toer deur die suide van Amerika om die segregasie van interprovinsiale reise uit te daag. Carmichael was gedurende die toer gearresteer in Jackson, Mississippi omdat hy ʼn “Whites Only” bus stop wagkamer binnegegaan het.[10] Hy was vir 49 dae toegesluit. Nie afgeskrik deur die arrestasie nie, het Carmichael verder deelname aan die beweging bestee. Hy was betrokke by nog ʼn “Freedom Ride” in Maryland, ʼn demonstrasie in Georgia en ook ʼn hospitaal werkersstaking in New York. Hy het gegradueer in 1964 met ʼn Honneursgraad aan die universiteit Howard in Washington, D.C.[11]

In 1964 het Carmichael aangesluit by die Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Met natuurlike leierseienskappe was Carmichael gou aangewys as die veld organiseerder in Lowndes County, Alabama. Toe Carmichael in Lowndes aangekom het, het swart mense die meerderheid van die populasie uitgemaak, maar was steeds nie verteenwoordig in die regering nie. In een jaar het Carmichael dit reggekry om die aantal swart stemme vanaf 70 te verhoog tot en met 2600, wat 300 meer is as die wit stemme.[12] Toe Carmichael geen reaksie kry uit die groter politieke partye nie, het hy sy eie party gestig naamlik die Lowndes County Freedom Organization (LCFO). Hy het toe ʼn logo gekies wat later as inspirasie vir ʼn ander swart aktivistiese organisasie sou dien – die Black Panther Party.[13]

Carmichael het grootliks die filosofie en niegewelddadige weerstand van dr Martin Luther King toegepas. Die idee was dat publieke steun gewen sou word deur die kontras van vreedsame swart weerstand en gewelddadige onderdrukking vanaf die opposisie uit te beeld.[14] Carmichael en baie ander aktiviste het tog later gefrustreerd geraak en gevoel dat hierdie proses te stadig is en dat dit belaglik is om herhaaldelike geweld en vernedering te ervaar. Teen 1966 was Carmichael as nasionale voorsitter verkies van die SNCC, maar hy het ook teen dié tyd alle geloof in die niegewelddadige weerstand teorie van die SNCC verloor.

Hy het die SNCC vinnig in ʼn meer radikale rigting verander daardeur duidelik te maak dat alle wit lede, wat gereeld gewerf was, nie meer welkom was in die SNCC nie.[15] In Junie 1966 het James Meredith, ʼn menseregte-aktivis wat die eerste swart student was in die universiteit van Mississippi, ʼn eensame “walk against fear” begin vanaf Memphis, Tennessee tot by Jackson, Mississippi. Sowat 40km in Mississippi was Meredith geskiet en gewond, hy kon nie die staptog klaarmaak nie, maar Carmichael het besluit dat SNCC vrywilligers hierdie staptog moes klaarmaak in Meredith se plek.[16] Op 16 Junie was Greenwood in Mississippi bereik en het Carmichael ʼn toespraak gelewer wat die rigting van die Menseregte-beweging sou verander. “We been saying ‘freedom’ for six years, what we are going to start saying now is ‘Black Power’”.[17] Dit is hier waar daar vir die eerste keer so openlik oor “Black Power” gepraat was, en dié ook in ʼn oomblik van aggressie.

Martin Luther King was gebore op 15 Januarie 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. Hy was in die hoërskool Booker T. Washington waar hy graad 9 en graad 12 verbygespring het en nie formeel gegradueer het nie. Op ouderdom 15 het hy by Morehouse kollege begin studeer waar hy toe in 1948 gegradueer het met ’n B.A. graad in sosiologie.[18]  Hy het toe by die Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania aangesluit en in 1951 daar gegradueer met ’n B.Div graad.[19] King het toe begin met sy doktorale studies in sistematiese teologie by die universiteit van Boston en hy het toe sy Ph.D. graad op 5 Junie 1955 verwerf.[20]

King het vroeg in sy loopbaan begin deelneem aan menseregte aktivisme. In 1955 het hy die Montgomery Bus Boycott gelei en ook die Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) gestig en as eerste president daarvan gedien in 1957.[21] King het in 1963 gehelp om die “March on Washington” te reël waar hy sy gewilde “I Have a Dream” toespraak gelewer het op 28 Augustus.[22] In 1965 het die “Selma Voting Rights Movement” plaasgevind, waar daar marsjeer wou word vir stemregte. Die eerste poging op 7 Maart 1965 staan bekend as “Bloody Sunday” om rede dit misluk het weens uiterse geweld vanaf polisie en die Mafia op die demonstrateurs.[23] Die tweede poging op 9 Maart was ʼn power poging aan King se kant omdat hy nie ʼn hofbevel wou oortree nie. Op 25 Maart 1965 het die derde en suksesvolle mars plaasgevind wat gelei was tot op die trappe van die hoofstad. King het hier sy “How Long, Not Long” toespraak gelewer.[24] In 1966 het die “Chicago Open Housing Movement” plaasgevind. Dit was ʼn reeks optogte wat deur die jaar plaasgevind het. Hierdie optogte se doel was om die diskriminerende bekomming van huise vir swart mense te stuit. King het later hierdie optogte self gekanselleer weens die gewelddadige gedrag van die betogers.[25] King was in een optog met ʼn baksteen getref.

’n Swart menseregte aktivis, Bayard Rustin, het Gandhi se sienings en ideologieë gestudeer. Hy was vir die eerste deel van King se aktivisme ’n mentor en hoof adviseur vir King.[26] Rustin het vir King aangemoedig om Gandhi se waardes van “non-violence” aan te neem en King was so geïnspireer met Mahatma Gandhi se sukses dat hy in 1959 ’n reis na Indië geneem het.[27] King het op sy laaste dag in Indië na gedink oor sy tyd daar en gesê “Since being in India, I am more convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for justice and human dignity”.[28] 

Die optog wat die impak van niegewelddadige protes die beste kan uitbeeld sal heel moontlik dié wees van “Bloody Sunday”. Betogers was met knuppels geslaan en ook met traangas gegooi. Beeldmateriaal van uiterse geweld teen passiewe betogers was wyd oor die land op televisie te sien wat blankes en swart mense geskok het. ʼn Vrou, Amelia Boynton, was amper dood geslaan en vergas deur polisie. Haar foto was regoor die wêreld in koerante en tydskrifte gepubliseer.[29]

Alhoewel die niegewelddadige beweging ʼn impak kan maak en tot ʼn sekere mate suksesvol kan wees, het dit nie aanvang gevind by alle swart Amerikaners nie. Die idee daarvan kon nie ondersteun word nie omdat swart mense moeg was vir die konstante geweld en onderdrukking van die polisie en wit ver-regse groepe. Weens moedeloosheid en keelvolheid vir geweld het swart mense groepe soos die Black Panther Party (BPP) gestig wat die beskerming van swart mense en swart buurte van polisie brutaliteit implementeer. Dit was ʼn revolusionêre sosialistiese organisasie wat ook sekere eienskappe van militêre bewegings aangeneem het.

Met die opkoms van militêre groepe soos die BPP weens geweld teen swart Amerikaners kan daar dus die afleiding gemaak word dat dit gepaard gaan met die opkoms van “Black Power”. Dit kan ook gesien word dat die aanhoudende niegewelddadige pogings vir menseregte op ʼn manier ʼn rol gespeel het in die opkoms van “Black Power”. Weens die brutaliteit en geweld wat teen hierdie passiewe betogers gebruik was om te onderdruk en onderwerp het dit sekere swart mense meer aggressief gemaak. Die onophoudelike geweld en stadige transformasie het sy tol geëis en ʼn ander uitweg was gevind – “Black Power”.

Die term “Black Power” het vinnig aanvang gevind by die meer radikale generasie van menseregte-aktiviste. Die term het ook internasionaal weerklank gevind waar dit in weerstand gebruik was teen Europese imperialisme in Afrika. In Carmichael se 1968 boek; Black Power: The Politics of Liberation verduidelik Carmichael swart mag soos volg “It is a call for black people in this country to unite, to recognize their heritage, to build a sense of community. It is a call for black people to define their own goals, to lead their own organizations”^[30]

Hierdie idee van “Black Power” het ʼn belangrike rol gespeel in verdere menseregte bewegings omdat dit die swart mense ʼn sin van trots gegee het en ook die mag wat hul besit laat besef. Dit het swart mense laat saamstaan, hulle erfenis laat terugneem en ook hulle gehelp om hulle doelwitte te bereik.

Bibliografie

Bennet, Scott H. Radical Pacifism: The war Resisters League and Gandhian Nonviolence in America, 1915-1963. New York: Syracuse University Press, 2003.

Bolden, Victor A. "Where Does New York City Go From Here: Chaos or Community?" Fordham Urban Law Journal, 1995: 1031-1052.

Ching, Jacqueline. The Assassination of of Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Rosen Publishing, 2002.

History.com Staff. History.com. 2009. http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/stokely-carmichael (accessed March 15, 2014).

Joseph, Peniel E. "Waiting 'Til the Midnight Hour: A narrative History of Black Power in America." Souls: A Critical Journal of Black Politics, Culture, and Society, 2007: 361-363.

Manheimer, Anne. Martin Luther King Jr.: Dreaming of Equality. Minneapolis: Twenty-First Century Books, 2004.

Ralph, James. Northern Protest: Martin Luther King, Jr., Chicago, and the Civil Rights Movement. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1993.

Warren, Mervyn. King Came Preaching: The Pulpit Power of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Westmont: Intervarsity Press, 2001.

Wertz, Marianna. The Schiller Institute. September 1, 2001. http://www.schillerinstitute.org/conf-iclc/2001/Labor%20Day/conf_sep_2001_mw_.html (accessed March 22, 2014).

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[1] Peniel, “Waiting ‘Til the Midnight Hour: A Narrative of Black Power in America” 1001.

[2] Ibid

[3] Ibid

[4] Bolden, “Where Does New York City Go From Here:Chaos or Community?” 1034.

[5] History.com, “Stokely Carmichael.”

[6] Ibid

[7] Ibid

[8] Ibid

[9] Ibid

[10] Ibid

[11] History.com, “Stokely Carmichael.”

[12] Ibid

[13] Ibid

[14] Ibid

[15] Ibid

[16] Ibid

[17] History.com, “Stokely Carmichael”

[18] Ching, The Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr, 18.

[19] Ibid

[20] Warren, King Came Preaching: The Pulpit Power of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, 35.

[21] Manheimer, Martin Luther King Jr.: Dreaming of Equality, 103.

[22] Ibid

[23] Ibid, 104.

[24] Manheimer, Martin Luther King Jr.: Dreaming of Equality, 104.

[25] Ralph, Northern Protest: Martin Luther King, Jr., Chicago, and the Civil Rights Movement, 2.

[26] Bennet, Radical Pacifism: The War Resisters League and Gandhian Nonviolence in America, 1915–1963, 217.

[27] Ibid

[28] Ibid

[29] The Schiller Institute, “Tribute to Amelia Boynton Robinson.”

[30] History.com, “Stokely Carmichael.”