African Poetry

Sunset Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali (South Africa, b. 1940) The sun spun like a tossed coin. It whirled on the azure sky, it clattered into the horizon, it clicked in the slot, and neon-lights popped and blinked "Time expired," as on a parking meter.. In this poem, the author compared the activities of the sunset to a coin. It made four things: being tossed, whirled, clicked to a coin slot, and as it did clicked, neon lights popped out, as on a parking meter. The figure of speech used is metaphor, specifically an extended metaphor. An extended metaphor continues the comparisons for the entire length of the poem. Mtshali asks you to see and hear and imagine the coinlike impressions that the sun can make. Extended metaphor also allow the readers to see the speakers point of view moree clearly as it continues. Different symbolisms are also present in the poem. The slot (in line 5), signifies the horizon where the sun is setting. The neon lights that popped out are stars that appear just as night comes forth, announcing the arrival of night. The sentence Time expired (line 8) is the pronouncement that night is approaching. Mtshali's poems explore the experiences of black South Africans and depict both urban and rural life, so he gave an urban flavor to the poem (as presented by the coin, neon lights, and the parking meter). Mtshalis wondered if the vastness of the suns rise and fall cannot be compared to a simple tossing of a coin. During his teaching gig at a private school in 1979, he explored the pain of his countrymen in the hands of a enemy called apartheid. There is a deeper meaning within the poem. It says that time is running out for Africans for them to acheive their true peace in this world. The continent is suffering from the blows of discrimination. If Africans would not act now, the world would soon be against the whole populace.

About the Author: Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali is among the most widely read of black South African poets writing in English. Born in rural Natal, a province in eastern South Africa, Mtshali now lives in Soweto, the large black township near the city of Johannesburg. He worked as a chauffeur, a messenger, and a deliveryman before publishing his best-selling first book of poetry, Sounds of a Cowhide Drum, in 1971. Mtshali's poems explore the experiences of black South Africans and depict both urban and rural life.

Map of Africa

African Short Story

Talk (An Ashanti Folk Tale) Retold by Harold Courlander and George Herzog Once, not far from the city of Accra on the Gulf of Guinea, a country man went out to his garden to dig up some yams to take to market. While he was digging, one of the yams said to him, Well, at last youre here. You never weeded me, butnow you come around with your digging stick. Go away and leave me alone! The farmer turned around and looked at his cow in amazement. The cow was chewing her cud and looking at him. Did you say something? he asked. The cow kept on chewing and said nothing, but the mans dog spoke up. It wasnt the cow who spoke to you, the dog said. It was the yam. The yam says leave him alone. The man became angry, because his dog had never talked before, and he didnt like his tone besides. So he took his knife and cut a branch from a palm tree to whip his dog. Just then the palm tree said, put that branch down! The man was getting very upset about the way things were going, and he started to throw the palm branch away, but the palm branch said, Man, put me down softly! He put the branch down gently on a stone, and the stone said, Hey, take that thing off me! This was enough, and the frightened farmer started to run to his village. On the way he met a fisherman going the other way with a fish trap on his head. Whats the hurry? the fisherman asked. My yam said, Leave me alone! Then the dog said, Listen to what the yam says! When i went to whip the dog with the palm branch the tree said, Put that branch down! Then the palm branch said, Do it softly! Then the stone said, Take that thing off me! Is that all? the man with the fish trap asked, Is that so frightening? Well, the mans fish trap said, did he take it off the stone? Wah! the fisherman shouted. He threw the fish trap on the ground and begun to run with the farmer, and on the trail they met a weaver with a bundle of cloth on his head. Where are you going in such a rush? he asked them. My yam said, Leave me alone! the farmer said.The dog said, Listen to what the yam says! The tree said, Put that branch down! The branch said, Do it softly! And the stone said, Take that thing off me! And then, the fisherman continued, the fish trap said, Did he take it off?

Thats nothing to get excited about, the weaver said. No reason at all. Oh, yes it is, his bundle of cloth said. If it happened to you youd run too! Wah! the weaver shouted. He threw his bundle on the trail and started running with the other men. They came panting to the ford in the river and found a man bathing. Are you chasing a gazelle? he asked them. The first man said breathlessly, My yam said, Leave me alone! And my dog said, Listen to your yam! And when I cut myself a branch the tree said, Put that branch down! and the branch said, Do it softly! And the stone said, Take that thing off me! The fisherman panted, And my trap said, Did he? The weaver wheezed. And my bundle of cloth said, Youd run too! Is that why youre running? the man in the river asked. Well, wouldnt you run if you were in their position? the river said. The man jumped out of the water and began to run with the others. They ran down the main street of the village to the house of the chief. The chiefs servant brought his stool out, and he came and sat on it to listen to their complaints. The men began to recite their troubles. I went out to my garden to dig yams, the farmer said, waving his arms. Then everything began to talk! My yam said, Leave me alone! My dog said, Pay attention to your yam! The tree said, Put that branch down! The branch said, Do it softly! And the stone said, Take that thing off me! And my fish trap said, Wel, did he take it off? the fisherman said. And my cloth said, Youd run too! the weaver said. And the river said the same, the bather said hoarsely, his eyes bulging. The chief listened to them patiently, but he couldnt refrain from scowling. Now this is really a wild story, he said at last. Youd better all go back to your work before I punish you for disturbing the peace. So the men went away, and the chief shook his head and mumbled to himself, Nonsense like that upsets the community. Fantastic, isnt it? his stool said. Imagine, a talking yam!

This short story is included in the book The Hat-Shaking Dance and Other Ashanti Tales from Ghana, a collection of folk tales by the Ashanti tribe, a tribe from the Western African nation of Ghana. Talk is set on the west coast of Africa, in the country now known as the Republic of Ghana, whose capital is Accra. Many of the storys details reflect the everyday life there. The first character in the story is a country man (more than 65 percent of the

population of Ghana is rural) who sets out to dig yams, one of the staples of the diet of rural Ghanaians. This country man owns a cow. Among the other characters in the story are a fisherman and a weaver, common occupations in Ghana, a country known for its beautiful hand-woven cloths. A river figures prominently in Talkmore than half of Ghanas landmass is occupied by the Volta River basin, which is filled with streams, marshes, and lagoons. The story builds a series of illogical situations. Illogical situations can make a work of fantasy more fantastic and entertaining. On the other hand, illogical situations can distract you from a story that otherwise seems to be realistic. This funny folk tale, a humurous one at that, makes light of human beings sense of superiority to the rest of the things on this planet. It ended on an ironic note, after the chiefs stool talked to the chief, who after hearing the complaints of the three.

Vocabulary Words: y y y y y y Accra (n.)- the capital and largest city of Ghana Ford (n.)- shallow place in the river that can be crossed Gazelle (n.)-antelope of the genus Gazella mostly native to Africa and capable of running at high speeds for long periods. Hoarsely (adv.)- With a dry, harsh voice. Refrain (v.)- to hold back. Scowling (v.)- contracting the eyebrows and frownin to show displeasure.

About the Authors: Harold Courlander (1908-1996) has had a long, distinguished career as a builder of bridges between different cultures. He has studied and written about numerous culturesAfrican, West Indian,Native American, and African American. His long list of publications includes a number of folk-tale colections as well as books on the literature and music of other cultures. The settings for his novels range from eighteenth-century Africa to rural Mississippi to the Hopi people before the arrival of the Europeans. In addition, Courlander has compiled and edited several albums of folk music from recordings he made in his research in the field. George Herzog (1901-84) born in Budapest, Hungary, Herzog pioneered in the field of ethnomusicology, which is the study of music for its cultural values and social significance.during his long career, Herzog founded programs of ethnomusicological studies at variousAmerican universities. He published numerous books on folk music, including the music of Native American and West African cultures.

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Project in ENGL311 (Afro-Asian Literature)

Submitted by:

Ricky Eralino Manliguis BSEd- English M72

Submitted to:

Ms. Marivic A. Pacia Instructor