Derek Walcott
Example A Grade A Level Essay
Walcott has said that the process of poetry is ‘one of excavation and of
self-discovery’. How far do you see this process in his work? In your answer you
should refer in detail to three poems.
Much of Walcott’s poetry displays excavation and self-discovery through the
exploration of themes such as nature, the environment and politics. By holding up a
mirror to the issues surrounding these themes, Walcott arguably recreates the past
and present as a form of excavation. Within his examination he is able to ignite an
awareness for the reader, around the issues of slavery, post-colonialism and
urbanisation. This awareness arguably awakens the reader to self-discovery, through
being informed on the aforementioned issues. Likewise, by speaking of these issues,
Walcott himself is also examining his own frustrations and expressing these views
through his poetry.
With reference to the poem, ‘Ebb’, Walcott sets out to explore the theme of
urbanisation and its harmful effects. The environment takes centre stage and is heavily
prominent throughout each stanza. For instance, the first verse of the poem describes
the endless cycle of how the earth is scorched and ‘fretted’ upon, how the earth
resembles a ‘frayed hide’. The verb, ‘fretted’ refers to how the land has been tampered
with and spoiled, and the adjective of ‘frayed’ shows the violent extent to which this
has happened. Lastly, the noun, ‘hide’ is used as a metaphor for a heavily lashed
animal hide. The use of this visual imagery effectively connotes how human greed
disrespects nature. This is arguably because Walcott strongly believed that since the
Caribbean islands left the federation and became independent islands like Jamaica, and
Trinidad and Tobago in 1962, and Walcott’s own native island, Saint Lucia in 1979,
they all suffered a lack of unity among the Caribbean as a whole. In turn this led
islands to be exploited for commercial greed. Another example of this can be found in
the line, ‘rainbow-muck’, which again is a metaphor used to describe oil. Of all of the
Caribbean Islands, Trinidad and Tobago is renowned for its copious oil supply, yet the
island itself appears not to prosper from it. Rather, the wealth generated from it is
passed directly into the pockets of other countries. Walcott further criticises the effects
of urbanisation by portraying nature as victim with the image of an ‘oil-crippled gull’.
Again ‘oil’ is used a symbol of urbanisation and greed, while the adjective of ‘crippled’
Example A Grade A Level Essay
Walcott has said that the process of poetry is ‘one of excavation and of
self-discovery’. How far do you see this process in his work? In your answer you
should refer in detail to three poems.
Much of Walcott’s poetry displays excavation and self-discovery through the
exploration of themes such as nature, the environment and politics. By holding up a
mirror to the issues surrounding these themes, Walcott arguably recreates the past
and present as a form of excavation. Within his examination he is able to ignite an
awareness for the reader, around the issues of slavery, post-colonialism and
urbanisation. This awareness arguably awakens the reader to self-discovery, through
being informed on the aforementioned issues. Likewise, by speaking of these issues,
Walcott himself is also examining his own frustrations and expressing these views
through his poetry.
With reference to the poem, ‘Ebb’, Walcott sets out to explore the theme of
urbanisation and its harmful effects. The environment takes centre stage and is heavily
prominent throughout each stanza. For instance, the first verse of the poem describes
the endless cycle of how the earth is scorched and ‘fretted’ upon, how the earth
resembles a ‘frayed hide’. The verb, ‘fretted’ refers to how the land has been tampered
with and spoiled, and the adjective of ‘frayed’ shows the violent extent to which this
has happened. Lastly, the noun, ‘hide’ is used as a metaphor for a heavily lashed
animal hide. The use of this visual imagery effectively connotes how human greed
disrespects nature. This is arguably because Walcott strongly believed that since the
Caribbean islands left the federation and became independent islands like Jamaica, and
Trinidad and Tobago in 1962, and Walcott’s own native island, Saint Lucia in 1979,
they all suffered a lack of unity among the Caribbean as a whole. In turn this led
islands to be exploited for commercial greed. Another example of this can be found in
the line, ‘rainbow-muck’, which again is a metaphor used to describe oil. Of all of the
Caribbean Islands, Trinidad and Tobago is renowned for its copious oil supply, yet the
island itself appears not to prosper from it. Rather, the wealth generated from it is
passed directly into the pockets of other countries. Walcott further criticises the effects
of urbanisation by portraying nature as victim with the image of an ‘oil-crippled gull’.
Again ‘oil’ is used a symbol of urbanisation and greed, while the adjective of ‘crippled’
