Dark nights, hot days:
You soil our fun and ruin our plays
The fridge is warm, the stove is cold
Hunger in the house is strong and bold
You come and go, you go and come
Unsure, unstable, like a dizzy bum
A bright surge now, then a yellow candle
Our darkest fears you hardly kindle
Sweat at work, sweat in the homes
In churches and mosques and their towers and domes
Factories go without a hum
The cost of your darkness is a pretty sum
Our books unread, homework undone
Though we stay awake till the dark, dark dawn
Nepa, oh NEPA
Some say you rhyme with 'leper'
In your dark we grope
And it's hard to cope
By Niyi Osundare
You soil our fun and ruin our plays
The fridge is warm, the stove is cold
Hunger in the house is strong and bold
You come and go, you go and come
Unsure, unstable, like a dizzy bum
A bright surge now, then a yellow candle
Our darkest fears you hardly kindle
Sweat at work, sweat in the homes
In churches and mosques and their towers and domes
Factories go without a hum
The cost of your darkness is a pretty sum
Our books unread, homework undone
Though we stay awake till the dark, dark dawn
Nepa, oh NEPA
Some say you rhyme with 'leper'
In your dark we grope
And it's hard to cope
By Niyi Osundare
Explanation of the poem
ReplyDeleteLovely poem... Please can I get the analysis
DeleteI had to do an analysis on the poem. It was hard to find one after a long search.
ReplyDeleteSUMMARY AND ANALYSIS OF THE POEM
ReplyDeleteThis poem talks about the Nigerian society and one of the prevalent issues. Light has disrupted the fun enjoyed by the people. Things that make life comfortable has been taken away by Light (Fridge and stove) and this has made hunger a prevalent situation in the community. Light is also described as an unstable entity that has turned into a “yellow candle”. This has also affected important sectors in the country – work, home, churches, mosque, factories, schools, “towers and domes”. This really affected the school system as pupils who are the future leaders are not able to do their homework and read their books. What then is the future of our country? The people “stay awake till the dark, dark dawn” yet, there is no sign of the light. This makes the poet lament “Nepa, oh Nepa”. In spite of the situation, citizens of the country still try to make ends meet as stated in the last two lines:
“in your dark we grope
And it’s hard to cope”
The poet explains that Light which represents the Nigerian government, makes it difficult for citizens to have a good life in spite of their efforts.
STRUCTURE OF TH POEM
The poem consist of 9 stanzas, with two lines for each stanza and a total of 18 lines. Each stanza explores the effect of light on the activities of members of the community.
POETIC DEVISES
Osundare makes use of simile, metaphor, alliteration and repetition and others to give this poet the needed effect.
a. Imagery: this is used to create vivid image in the mind of the readers. Words like sweat, fridge, stove and hunger.
B. Personification: The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form. This means giving human attributes to inanimate things. Light is given human attributes using words like /phrases like “dizzy bum”, “…you rhyme with leper”, “you soil our fun and ruin our plays.”
“hunger is strong and bold.”
c. Repetition:
You come and go, you go and come
“Nepa oh Nepa”
Assonance: When words sound alike, it is also the repetition of internal vowel sounds in words. This is seen in the poem with each line of the poem ending with words that sound alike.
I hope this helps. For more analysis on poems kindly contact me:
email- aekpono@gmail.com
Phone number: 08132053005
Thank you for this, I really appreciate you taking it up to provide an analysis to this poem.
Delete.👏👏This is a beautiful poem
ReplyDeleteI need the theme pls ASAP
ReplyDeleteNepa comes and nepa goes
ReplyDeleteGreat summary I must say .Thank for your time and really enjoyed the website.
ReplyDeleteThank you,you have made my day. Unlike other blogs that gives rubbish,pls update more poems on your blog
ReplyDeletePlus can you make a note on the poem NEPA for me
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for this summary and analysis this will really help me in my assignment
ReplyDeleteThis analysis really helped after a long, stressful search
ReplyDeletePlease the themes
ReplyDeletePlease the diction ASAP
ReplyDelete