Welcome, aspiring literary explorers, to a journey into one of the most poignant and powerful poems of the twentieth century. Today, we delve into Derek Walcott’s “A Far Cry from Africa,” a work that challenges the mind and stirs the soul. Prepare to uncover the layers of meaning, the masterful use of language, and the profound questions this poem poses about identity, violence, and the legacy of colonialism. Let us begin by immersing ourselves in the poem itself.
A wind is ruffling the tawny pelt
Of Africa. Kikuyu, quick as flies,
Batten upon the bloodstreams of the veldt.
Corpses are scattered through a paradise.
Only the worm, colonel of carrion, cries
“Waste no compassion on these separate dead!”
Statistics justify and scholars seize
The salients of colonial policy.
What is that to the white child hacked in bed?
To savages, expendable as Jews?Threshed out by beaters, the long rushes break
In a white dust of ibises whose cries
Have wheeled since civilization’s dawn
From the parched river or beast‑teeming plain.
The violence of beast on beast is read
As natural law, but upright man
Seeks his divinity by inflicting pain.
Delirious as these worried beasts, his wars
Dance to the tightened carcass of a drum,
While he calls courage still that native dread
Of the white peace contracted by the dead.Again brutish necessity wipes its hands
Upon the napkin of a dirty cause, again
A waste of our compassion, as with Spain,
The gorilla wrestles with the superman.
I who am poisoned with the blood of both,
Where shall I turn, divided to the vein?
I who have cursed
The drunken officer of British rule, how choose
Between this Africa and the English tongue I love?
Betray them both, or give back what they give?
How can I face such slaughter and be cool?
How can I turn from Africa and live?
Understanding “A Far Cry from Africa”
“A Far Cry from Africa” by Derek Walcott, a Nobel laureate from Saint Lucia, stands as a seminal work exploring the harrowing complexities of colonial conflict and the agonizing dilemmas of a divided identity. Penned in 1962, this poem directly confronts the brutality of the Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya, a violent anti‑colonial struggle between the indigenous Kikuyu people and British settlers.
The Heart of the Poem: A Summary
The poem opens with a stark image of Africa, its landscape metaphorically described as a “tawny pelt” being ruffled by a violent wind. This immediately sets a tone of unrest and conflict. Walcott vividly portrays the Mau Mau uprising, depicting the Kikuyu people as “quick as flies” attacking the “bloodstreams of the veldt,” resulting in “corpses scattered through a paradise.” The poem critiques the detached, dehumanizing perspective of colonial powers, where “Statistics justify and scholars seize / The salients of colonial policy,” reducing human suffering to mere data points. It challenges this cold logic by asking about the fate of innocent victims on all sides, including “the white child hacked in bed” and those deemed “expendable as Jews.”
The second stanza broadens the scope, drawing parallels between human violence and the natural world. While “the violence of beast on beast is read / As natural law,” Walcott observes that “upright man / Seeks his divinity by inflicting pain.” This profound irony highlights humanity’s capacity for organized, rationalized cruelty, contrasting it with the instinctual actions of animals. The stanza suggests a cyclical nature of conflict, where wars are a “dance to the tightened carcass of a drum,” driven by a “native dread” that is paradoxically called courage.
The final stanza brings the conflict to a deeply personal level, as the speaker grapples with his own mixed heritage. He feels “poisoned with the blood of both,” caught between his African ancestry and his love for the “English tongue.” This internal struggle is the poem’s emotional core, as he questions how to reconcile these opposing forces. The speaker asks, “how choose / Between this Africa and the English tongue I love?” and concludes with a series of desperate rhetorical questions, revealing his profound anguish and the impossibility of remaining neutral or unaffected by such widespread suffering. The poem ultimately becomes a powerful lament for senseless killing, a meditation on the complexities of patriotism, and a stark examination of the enduring legacy of anti‑colonialism.
Key Insights and Central Ideas
At its core, “A Far Cry from Africa” explores the devastating impact of colonialism on both the colonized and the colonizer, particularly through the lens of identity. The central idea revolves around the speaker’s profound dilemma: how does one reconcile a heritage that is simultaneously oppressed and oppressor? The “far cry” itself can be interpreted in multiple ways: a cry of anguish from Africa, a cry for understanding from the poet, or the vast, irreconcilable distance between the two cultures he embodies. The poem challenges the simplistic narratives of good versus evil in conflict, instead presenting a nuanced, painful reality where innocence is lost on all sides and moral choices are agonizingly difficult. It is a powerful exploration of the human cost of political struggle and the search for a moral compass amidst chaos.
Unpacking the Poetic Craft: Literary Devices in “A Far Cry from Africa”
Derek Walcott masterfully employs a rich tapestry of literary devices to imbue “A Far Cry from Africa” with its profound emotional depth and intellectual complexity. Understanding these techniques unlocks the poem’s full power.
Imagery: Painting a Vivid Picture
Walcott’s use of vivid imagery creates powerful sensory experiences for the reader, making the abstract horrors of war tangible. For example, the opening line, “A wind is ruffling the tawny pelt / Of Africa,” immediately conjures a visual of the continent as a living, breathing creature, disturbed and agitated. The phrase “Corpses are scattered through a paradise” is a chilling juxtaposition, highlighting the desecration of a beautiful land by violence. Later, the image of “the white child hacked in bed” is designed to shock and evoke immediate empathy, emphasizing the indiscriminate nature of the brutality. These images are not merely descriptive; they serve to underscore the poem’s themes of desecration, loss, and the pervasive presence of death.
Metaphor and Simile: Drawing Powerful Connections
Walcott frequently uses metaphor and simile to draw striking comparisons, enriching the poem’s meaning. The description of the Kikuyu as “quick as flies, / Batten upon the bloodstreams of the veldt” is a powerful simile that dehumanizes the fighters while emphasizing their swift, relentless attack and the gruesome nature of the conflict. A notable metaphor appears in “Only the worm, colonel of carrion, cries.” Here, the worm is elevated to the rank of a military leader, a “colonel,” overseeing the battlefield of death. This metaphor ironically suggests that only the scavengers truly benefit from war, or perhaps that they are the only ones with a clear, unsentimental perspective on the “waste” of human life.
Personification: Giving Life to the Abstract
Personification is used to give human qualities to inanimate objects or abstract concepts, making them more relatable and impactful. In the lines “brutish necessity wipes its hands / Upon the napkin of a dirty cause,” necessity itself is personified as a callous entity, washing away its guilt with a superficial gesture. This technique highlights how often violence is rationalized and sanitized, even when its underlying motivations are morally corrupt. It underscores the idea that justifications for war are often flimsy and self-serving.
Irony: Unveiling Contradictions
The poem employs irony to expose the inherent contradictions and moral ambiguities of human behavior, particularly in conflict. A profound example is found in “upright man / Seeks his divinity by inflicting pain.” This statement is deeply ironic because it contrasts humanity’s supposed moral superiority and spiritual aspirations with its capacity for extreme cruelty. It suggests that in the pursuit of power or perceived righteousness, humans often descend to their most base instincts, betraying the very ideals they claim to uphold.
Rhetorical Questions: Provoking Deep Thought
The poem concludes with a series of powerful rhetorical questions, designed not for an answer but to provoke profound introspection and emphasize the speaker’s internal turmoil. Questions like “How can I face such slaughter and be cool?” and “How can I turn from Africa and live?” articulate the speaker’s agonizing moral dilemma. They underscore the impossibility of detachment and the inescapable burden of his dual heritage, forcing the reader to confront the same unanswerable questions about complicity and identity.
Symbolism: Layers of Meaning
Symbolism in “A Far Cry from Africa” adds layers of meaning beyond the literal. The “tawny pelt / Of Africa” symbolizes the continent itself, not just as a geographical place but as a living entity, vulnerable and scarred. “Bloodstreams of the veldt” symbolizes the lifeblood of the land and its people, now tainted by violence. The “English tongue” symbolizes not just a language, but the entire cultural, intellectual, and colonial legacy of Britain, which the speaker both loves and resents. The contrasting figures of “the gorilla” and “the superman” symbolize the perceived primitivism of the colonized versus the supposed superiority of the colonizer, highlighting the dehumanizing rhetoric often used in colonial conflicts.
Sound Devices: Alliteration, Assonance, Consonance
Walcott skillfully employs sound devices to enhance the poem’s musicality and emotional resonance.
- Alliteration, the repetition of initial consonant sounds, draws attention to specific phrases. An example is “colonel of carrion, cries,” where the repeated ‘c’ sound creates a harsh, guttural effect, mirroring the grim subject matter.
- Assonance, the repetition of vowel sounds within words, adds a lyrical quality. The repetition of the ‘a’ sound in “Corpses are scattered through a paradise” creates a mournful, drawn-out sound, emphasizing the tragedy. Similarly, the ‘o’ sound in “Only the worm, colonel of carrion” contributes to the somber tone.
- Consonance, the repetition of consonant sounds within words or at the end of words, also contributes to the poem’s auditory texture. The repeated ‘s’ sound in “Statistics justify and scholars seize” creates a sibilant, almost whispering effect, suggesting the insidious nature of colonial justification.
The Architecture of Verse: Poetic Devices in “A Far Cry from Africa”
Beyond individual literary flourishes, Walcott’s structural and rhythmic choices in “A Far Cry from Africa” are integral to its overall impact and meaning.
Diction: The Power of Word Choice
Walcott’s diction, or word choice, is precise and powerful, contributing significantly to the poem’s serious and contemplative tone. Words like “batten,” “veldt,” “salients,” “threshed,” “delirious,” and “contracted” are carefully selected for their evocative power and specific connotations. For instance, “batten” suggests a parasitic feeding, immediately establishing a sense of exploitation. “Salients” refers to military projections, subtly reinforcing the strategic, almost clinical, approach to colonial policy. This sophisticated vocabulary elevates the poem’s intellectual weight and demands careful attention from the reader.
Stanza Structure: Shaping the Narrative Flow
The poem is structured into three distinct stanzas, each contributing to the unfolding narrative and emotional progression. The first stanza, with its ten lines, sets the scene of violence and colonial justification. The second, slightly longer at eleven lines, broadens the philosophical scope, comparing human and animal violence. The final stanza, expanding to twelve lines, intensifies the personal dilemma of the speaker. This gradual increase in stanza length subtly mirrors the growing intensity of the speaker’s emotional turmoil and the escalating complexity of the issues at hand, drawing the reader deeper into the conflict.
Rhyme and Rhythm: Crafting Musicality and Emphasis
Walcott employs a varied and often irregular rhyme scheme throughout “A Far Cry from Africa.” While end rhymes are present, such as “pelt” and “veldt,” or “flies” and “paradise” in the first stanza, the pattern is not strictly consistent. This variation prevents predictability and mirrors the chaotic, unpredictable nature of the conflict being described. The rhythm, while not strictly metrical, often carries a strong, almost oratorical cadence, particularly in the declarative and questioning lines. This blend of musicality and irregularity creates a dynamic reading experience, reflecting the poem’s complex and often unsettling themes.
Tone: The Poem’s Emotional Landscape
The tone of “A Far Cry from Africa” is complex and multifaceted, shifting between lamentation, anger, despair, and profound introspection. It begins with a tone of stark realism and detached observation of violence, then moves to a more philosophical and ironic critique of human nature. The final stanza is characterized by a deeply personal and anguished tone, as the speaker grapples with his internal conflict. This blend of didacticism, irony, and tragedy creates a rich, emotionally resonant experience, inviting readers to engage with the poem on multiple intellectual and emotional levels.
Conclusion: The Enduring Resonance of Walcott’s Cry
“A Far Cry from Africa” remains a powerful and essential poem for anyone seeking to understand the enduring legacies of colonialism, the complexities of identity, and the universal tragedy of human conflict. Derek Walcott’s masterful command of language, his vivid imagery, and his unflinching exploration of moral dilemmas ensure that this poem continues to resonate deeply. It challenges readers to look beyond simplistic narratives, to confront uncomfortable truths, and to acknowledge the profound, often painful, interconnectedness of history, culture, and personal identity. Walcott’s cry from Africa is not just a historical lament; it is a timeless call for empathy and understanding in a world still grappling with division.