By die robot in Eerstelaan Van Aswegen, Marita
Poem in context:
How would it feel to wake up every morning and not know if it is light or dark, to depend on
sounds to tell you if it is already day... to get up and move around by feeling? Being blind is
bad, but being blind and poor must be very bad, because you are at the mercy of others. And
sometimes people abuse others' blindness to enrich themselves. This poem gives us a
glimpse into a universal problem: criminals who force people to beg and then take the money
for themselves.
Marita van Aswegen is a part-time social worker who has seen and experienced much misery
- a world where people without conscience abuse children and people who are helpless. She
writes from this world about this world.
Analysis:
alliterasie Alliteration is the repetition of consonants in close
(alliteration) succession, especially at the beginning of stressed syllables:
"so stiff and sore"
assonansie Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line
(assonance) of verse: "the tin can rings".
inversie/omgekeerde When the normal word order is changed, for example to
woordorde emphasize certain words, or for the sake of rhyme or rhythm
(inversion) in a poem.
ironie Words are used in such a way that they have the opposite
(irony) meaning of their literal meaning. Irony also occurs when the
opposite of what is generally expected happens.
metafoor When an image is used directly and not given in a
(metaphor) comparison: "black wind".
klanknabootsing When a sound is expressed through words, for example: "two
(onomatopoeia) pairs of feet slapping over the tar".
polisindeton This is when a poet lists a bunch of different things, but
(polysyndeton) connects them with the word "and." By doing this, he
emphasizes each thing.
progressie It is related to development and change. For example, there
(progression) can be development in the course of time or in the chain of
events.
rymskema en soorte rym This is a pattern of rhyming words at the end of lines of verse.
(rhyme scheme) It is named with letters of the alphabet, for example: cross
rhyme: abab; pair rhyme: aabb.
sintuiglike waarneming One perceives through one's senses: you
(sensory perception) smell/taste/see/feel/hear something. When a poet wants to
draw a picture, he uses images where the reader must rely
, on his senses to understand it, for example: "feet girts"
(hear), "his breath smells of beer" (smell).
universeel This is when events do not apply only to one person or
(universal) situation, but can happen anywhere, at any time, and to any
person in the world.
Outline
Tema Be at the mercy of others
(theme)
Stemming Depressing
(appearance)
Bou External structure: The poem has eight stanzas of four lines
(structure) each. Apart from stanza 6 where cross rhyme occurs, the
other stanzas have paired rhyme. The poem has a fixed
rhythm and each line forms a phrase on its own that tells
something. Alliteration and assonance contribute to binding
the phrases. The external structure helps the reader to feel
what the blind beggar experiences: every day's routine is the
same and he is caught up in a situation from which he cannot
escape.
Inner structure: The content of the poem paints a picture for
the reader of how the day goes.
Atmosfeer A few things create the atmosphere:
(Atmosphere)
There is progression in the passage of time and events: from
line 1 (they walk) to 5 (the robot turns red and the traffic
stops) to 15 (the robot turns green and traffic moves away) to
19 (the robot turns red and the traffic stops) to 21 (someone
opens a window) to 25 (the person throws money into his
can) to 20 (the woman sees he is blind and gives more
money).
Sensory perception further colors the atmosphere. The blind
person experiences the world through his other senses - what
he can hear, smell and feel. The poet creates atmosphere by
using onomatopoeic words such as "girts" and "klingel". Also
what the blind person smells, such as "ruik na bier". In this
way, the poet places the reader in the shoes of the blind
beggar and the reader experiences the environment as the
blind person experiences it.
The tsotsi's actions also support the atmosphere: line 9 "his
arm is plucked and jerked and he is frightened", also lines 11,
12, 24 and 32.
Poem in context:
How would it feel to wake up every morning and not know if it is light or dark, to depend on
sounds to tell you if it is already day... to get up and move around by feeling? Being blind is
bad, but being blind and poor must be very bad, because you are at the mercy of others. And
sometimes people abuse others' blindness to enrich themselves. This poem gives us a
glimpse into a universal problem: criminals who force people to beg and then take the money
for themselves.
Marita van Aswegen is a part-time social worker who has seen and experienced much misery
- a world where people without conscience abuse children and people who are helpless. She
writes from this world about this world.
Analysis:
alliterasie Alliteration is the repetition of consonants in close
(alliteration) succession, especially at the beginning of stressed syllables:
"so stiff and sore"
assonansie Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line
(assonance) of verse: "the tin can rings".
inversie/omgekeerde When the normal word order is changed, for example to
woordorde emphasize certain words, or for the sake of rhyme or rhythm
(inversion) in a poem.
ironie Words are used in such a way that they have the opposite
(irony) meaning of their literal meaning. Irony also occurs when the
opposite of what is generally expected happens.
metafoor When an image is used directly and not given in a
(metaphor) comparison: "black wind".
klanknabootsing When a sound is expressed through words, for example: "two
(onomatopoeia) pairs of feet slapping over the tar".
polisindeton This is when a poet lists a bunch of different things, but
(polysyndeton) connects them with the word "and." By doing this, he
emphasizes each thing.
progressie It is related to development and change. For example, there
(progression) can be development in the course of time or in the chain of
events.
rymskema en soorte rym This is a pattern of rhyming words at the end of lines of verse.
(rhyme scheme) It is named with letters of the alphabet, for example: cross
rhyme: abab; pair rhyme: aabb.
sintuiglike waarneming One perceives through one's senses: you
(sensory perception) smell/taste/see/feel/hear something. When a poet wants to
draw a picture, he uses images where the reader must rely
, on his senses to understand it, for example: "feet girts"
(hear), "his breath smells of beer" (smell).
universeel This is when events do not apply only to one person or
(universal) situation, but can happen anywhere, at any time, and to any
person in the world.
Outline
Tema Be at the mercy of others
(theme)
Stemming Depressing
(appearance)
Bou External structure: The poem has eight stanzas of four lines
(structure) each. Apart from stanza 6 where cross rhyme occurs, the
other stanzas have paired rhyme. The poem has a fixed
rhythm and each line forms a phrase on its own that tells
something. Alliteration and assonance contribute to binding
the phrases. The external structure helps the reader to feel
what the blind beggar experiences: every day's routine is the
same and he is caught up in a situation from which he cannot
escape.
Inner structure: The content of the poem paints a picture for
the reader of how the day goes.
Atmosfeer A few things create the atmosphere:
(Atmosphere)
There is progression in the passage of time and events: from
line 1 (they walk) to 5 (the robot turns red and the traffic
stops) to 15 (the robot turns green and traffic moves away) to
19 (the robot turns red and the traffic stops) to 21 (someone
opens a window) to 25 (the person throws money into his
can) to 20 (the woman sees he is blind and gives more
money).
Sensory perception further colors the atmosphere. The blind
person experiences the world through his other senses - what
he can hear, smell and feel. The poet creates atmosphere by
using onomatopoeic words such as "girts" and "klingel". Also
what the blind person smells, such as "ruik na bier". In this
way, the poet places the reader in the shoes of the blind
beggar and the reader experiences the environment as the
blind person experiences it.
The tsotsi's actions also support the atmosphere: line 9 "his
arm is plucked and jerked and he is frightened", also lines 11,
12, 24 and 32.
