Lesson one
1.1 FEELINGS AND ATTITUDE (poetry)
A feeling can be described as an emotion while Attitude means a person’s feeling towards something or somebody.
Words are the mirrors of the human mind that give shape to our feelings, express our `thoughts, facilitate communication and convey emotions. There are words and then there are nice words to describe our feelings.
Poems may evoke feelings of anger, anxiety, misery, excitement, loneliness, disgust, bitterness, rage, empathy, sorrow, disappointment, admiration, confusion, discontent, depression, pride, appreciation, hope (optimism), love/ adoration, inspiration, fear, curiosity, and pessimism among others.
Note that when answering questions on feelings, one should not contrast or deviate from human feelings. Avoid generalizations like sad, happy, bad, and good or touched since they are not descriptive enough.
1.2 Example
A FREEDOM SONG
Atieno washes dishes,
Atieno plucks the chicken,
Atieno gets up early,
Beds her sacks down in the kitchen,
Atieno eight years old
Atieno yo.
Since she is my sister’s child
Atieno needs no pay
While she works,my wife can sit
Seeing every sunny day,
With her earnings I support
Atieno yo.
Atieno’s sly and jealous
Bad example to the kids
Since she minds them, like a school girl
Wants their dresses, shoes and beads.
Atieno ten years old,
Atieno yo.
Now my wife has gone to study
Atieno is less free,
Don’t I feed her, school my own ones?
Pay the party, union fee
All for progress? Aren’t you grateful?
Atieno yo?
Visitors need much attention,
Especially when I work nights.
That girl stays too long at market
Who will teach her what is right?
Atieno rising fourteen,
Atieno yo.
Atieno’s had a baby
So we know that she is bad
Fifty- fifty, it may live
To repeat the life she had,
Ending in post-partum bleeding
Atieno yo.
Atieno’s soon replaced
Meat and sugar more than all
She ate in such a narrow life
Were lavished on her funeral
Atieno’s gone to glory
Atieno yo.
Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye (Kenya)
QUESTIONS
- What is the poem about?
The poem is about child labour, exploitation and oppression. Atieno works as a house girl at just the age of eight without pay at her own uncle’s home yet she should be at school like her cousins. She is mistered by her own uncle and ends in death due to post-partum bleeding.
- Identify the persona in the poem.
The persona is Atieno’s uncle since speaker says that Atieno is his own sister’s child and while she works, his wife can sit.
- Identify any two chores that Atieno does.
Atieno washes the dishes and plucks the chicken
- Who is the poet?
The poet is Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye.
- What feelings does the poem evoke in you?
The poem evokes the feeling of disappointment or disillusionment when the uncle who is meant to take care of Atieno exploits and uses her as a maid instead, at the end, she ends up in death due to post-partum bleeding.
Pity for Atieno who is meant to be at school like any other child ,she remains at home and does all the domestic chores ,she is not given any good care ,she desires to have dresses, shoes and beads of her cousins since she is not given any .
The poem also evokes the feeling of anger/ annoyance since it says that at the funeral, meat and sugar more than all that she had eaten in such a narrow life were lavished at her funeral. This brings out the hypocrisy of Atieno’s uncle.
Pessimism since Atieno becomes pregnant at the age of fourteen due to poor parental care since her aunt has gone to study and her uncle is busy with work, Atieno has no one to teach her what is right
1.3 Exercise
THE LOVED ONE
He told of his love
And how it would last
Until Nalubale dried up
How it would flow on and on
Like the Nile.
He declared to her
How he does not eat or drink
How he does not sleep
And how he cares for her alone
But when she asked for proof
He only smiled and answered
“It’s true “
When in fact he had first had lunch
And was belching and contented
Apollo Lukaye
Questions
- Who is speaking in the poem?
The speaker in the poem is an observer who may have heard or seen how a boy declared his love to a girl.
- Was the boy serious about his love?
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- Which part of the poem tells you the answer? Identify the stanza and line.
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- What feelings does the poem evoke in you?
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1.4 Oral literature
- Define fairytales?
These are children’s story about magical and imaginary beings and lands.
- Mention any examples of fairytales that you know.
- Cinderella
- Rapunzel
- Beauty and the beast
- Sleeping Beauty
- The Little mermaid
- Frog prince
- Snow White and the seven dwarfs
- Choose any of the above examples and write one fairytale story
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