INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POETRY Lesson Note

African Poetry refers to poetry written by African poets or poetry that deals with African experiences, culture, traditions, social issues and the African way of life.

African poets use poetry to express their feelings, experiences, opinions and concerns about individuals and society.

African poetry may deal with issues such as: Culture, Identity, Colonialism, Love, Death, Corruption, Poverty, Social change, Family, Politics and Human relationships.

One of the notable African poets is Gabriel Okara, a Nigerian poet and novelist.

Gabriel Imomotimi Okara was a Nigerian poet and novelist. He was born in 1921 in Bayelsa State, Nigeria.

He is regarded as one of the important pioneers of modern African poetry written in English.

His works often deal with African culture, identity, changing values and the effects of modernisation on African society. One of his well-known poems is “Once Upon a Time.”

In this poem, Okara examines how human beings have changed from being sincere and genuine to becoming artificial and hypocritical.

Once Upon a Time is a reflective poem in which a father speaks to his son about how people have changed over time.

The speaker remembers a period when people were more genuine and sincere in their relationships. However, he observes that people have gradually become artificial.

People now smile without meaning it, shake hands without genuine friendship and show interest in others without truly caring about them.

The speaker also admits that he himself has learnt these behaviours. He has learnt how to put on different “faces” depending on the situation.

At the end of the poem, the speaker expresses his desire to return to being genuine and sincere. He asks his son to teach him how to become natural again.

Hypocrisy is one of the major themes in the poem. The poet criticises people who pretend to care about others when they do not genuinely care. People smile at one another without sincerity and behave as friends without having genuine feelings. The speaker notices that society has become filled with people who pretend to be what they are not.

The poem also deals with the loss of innocence. The speaker remembers a time when people behaved naturally and sincerely. However, as society changed, people became more artificial.

The speaker himself has lost some of his natural behaviour because he has learnt to behave like the people around him.

The poem presents the negative side of social change. According to the speaker, society has moved from a time when relationships were more genuine to a time when people are more concerned with appearances and personal interests. The poet therefore questions whether all changes in society are necessarily positive.

People in the poem no longer behave naturally. They put on different “faces” depending on where they are and who they are interacting with. The use of “faces” represents the different personalities people display to others. The speaker wants to remove these artificial behaviours and become genuine again.

The poem also presents a relationship between a father and his son. The father recognises that he has lost something valuable and looks towards his son as someone who still possesses the qualities he has lost. The son therefore represents innocence, sincerity and natural behaviour.

The speaker wants to become a genuine person again. He does not want to continue pretending or wearing different personalities.

His request to his son to teach him how to be natural again shows his strong desire to return to sincerity.

The poem is presented as a conversation between a father and his son.

First Stage;

The speaker begins by telling his son that people were different in the past. He remembers a time when people smiled genuinely and welcomed visitors sincerely.

Second Stage;

The speaker explains how things have changed. People now smile only because it is socially expected. Their smiles do not necessarily represent their true feelings.

Third Stage;

The speaker describes other artificial behaviours. People shake hands, laugh and interact with one another, but their actions are often without genuine feelings.

Fourth Stage;

The speaker admits that he has also become part of this artificial society. He has learnt how to behave differently in different situations. He has learnt to put on different “faces.”

Fifth Stage;

The speaker becomes uncomfortable with the person he has become. He wants to remove these artificial behaviours and return to his former natural self.

Final Stage;

The speaker turns to his son and asks him to teach him how to become genuine again.

The ending is important because the father sees the child as possessing the sincerity and innocence that adults have lost.

The poet repeats certain words and ideas throughout the poem to emphasise the changes that have taken place in society. The repeated references to smiles, faces and behaviour strengthen the poet's criticism of artificial relationships.

The poet uses “faces” metaphorically. The different faces represent the different personalities people present to others. The speaker has learnt to wear different “faces” depending on the situation.

The poet uses comparisons to show how people's behaviour has changed. The comparisons make the speaker's observations about society clearer to the reader.

There is irony in the fact that people appear friendly and happy on the outside while their real feelings may be completely different. For example, people smile at one another, but the smiles may not be genuine.

The poet creates clear pictures in the minds of readers through descriptions of people's smiles, handshakes, faces and behaviour. This makes the poem easy to visualize.

The poet gives human qualities to things that are not human in order to make his message more effective.

The “face” is an important symbol in the poem. It represents the personality or character that a person presents to the outside world. The different faces therefore symbolise pretence and artificial behaviour.

The speaker uses questions and expressions that encourage the reader to think about the changes in human behaviour and relationships.

The title “Once Upon a Time” reminds readers of traditional stories that usually begin with that expression. However, Okara uses the expression to look back at a past period when life and human relationships seemed more sincere.

The major message of Once Upon a Time is that society has changed from genuine human relationships to artificial and hypocritical relationships.

The poet encourages people to be sincere and genuine rather than pretending to be what they are not.

The poem also reminds us that social development should not cause us to lose important human values such as love, sincerity, kindness and genuine friendship.

Once Upon a Time by Gabriel Okara is an African poem that examines the changes in human behaviour and relationships.

The speaker compares the sincerity of people in the past with the artificial behaviour of people in the present. He observes that people now smile, laugh and interact with one another without necessarily having genuine feelings.

The speaker admits that he has also become part of this artificial society. However, he wants to return to his natural and sincere self. He therefore looks to his son, who represents innocence and genuineness, and asks him to teach him how to become natural again.

The major themes include hypocrisy, loss of innocence, social change, artificiality, generational differences and the desire for genuineness.