Poetry Comparison - experiences of the oppressed
Aboriginal Australia by Jack Davis, Our Village by Wopko Jensma, and Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali's Nightfall in Soweto all explore the experiences of the oppressed. Each poet does this in their own unique way - exploring related themes and using various poetic techniques. Despite these differences the oppressive experiences of the poets' respective people are very similar.Aboriginal Australia offers a bleak view of Australian history, and its continued persecution of the Aboriginal people. The subtitle of the poem reads "To the others". Davis clearly illustrates a division in society, the 'others' being the white people. He further emphasises this division with his constant use of the word 'you', which is directed at white people. His repetition of 'I' represents the Aboriginal people. In Our Village we see the same separation of cultures with the Africans and whites. Jensma's repetition of personal pronouns 'they', 'us' and 'our' emphasises this division. Jensma, like Jack Davis and Mtshali represents the entire black population when using these personal pronouns.In all three poems it is the black population that suffers from the social division. In Aboriginal Australia Davis writes how the Aboriginals' were 'murdered', 'mas
This violence and oppression emphasises the evil, greed and callousness of the white people. This emphasises the treachery and deception of the white people. sacred', 'buried' in a 'common grave' - all dark images we associate with death, indignity and pain. In Aboriginal Australia the tone changes from disappointment, lament, anger, and bitterness eliciting from the reader a complex range of emotions. Jack Davis likens the treatment dealt out by white people as 'greed that kills'. The oppression the poets' people in each case cause a great deal of loss. He is not even able to seek refuge in his own home. This also reveals the sarcastic/ironic tone of the poem. The experiences of the oppressed are explored differently by the writers of Aboriginal Australia, Nightfall in Soweto and Our Village. In Aboriginal Australia Davis makes reference to the "Worrarra men" and the "Murray Tribe" - people that have been killed off or destroyed - "Gone too without a trace". This emphasises the corrupt state of the white people. It can be seen that this prejudice is then traced through the years to today. We see the innocence and vulnerability of the Aboriginal people in Aboriginal Australia with the strong imagery of the "thin stick bones of people". The first verse indicates the severity of change in the village, "Since two gents with white suits rolled up / Our village is not the same anymore".
Common topics in this essay:
Aboriginal Australia,
Nightfall Soweto,
Jack Davis,
Soweto Mtshali,
Australia Davis,
Jack Davis's,
Murray Tribe,
Davis Mtshali,
white people,
Soweto Village,
aboriginal australia,
nightfall soweto,
aboriginal people,
people nightfall,
jack davis,
people nightfall soweto,
aboriginal australia davis,
personal pronouns,
emphasises division,
snapped shut lawbook,
strong imagery,
images associate,
white people snapped,
people snapped shut,
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Acceptance Essays
