|
READ THIS
The poet surveys South Africa during the deepest, darkest days of apartheid and prays that God may
intervene to bring about the salvation of its people.
A NOTE ON THE POET
Frederick Guy Butler was born in January 1918 of an 1820 Settler family. He was educated in Cradock
in the Eastern Cape and thereupon attended Rhodes University where he received a Masters degree in
English in 1938.
He married Jean Satchwell in 1940 -- with whom he would eventually have three sons and a daughter
-- but soon after the wedding he left to fight in World War II.
Once the war was over, he sojourned for a time in England to attend Brasenose College of Oxford
University where he read for a Doctorate in English Literature, graduating in 1947.
He returned immediately to South Africa to lecture at the University of the Witwatersrand, before returning
to Rhodes University in 1952 as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English.
Almost immediately he was promoted to the rank of Professor where he would remain until his retirement
in 1987. As with most retiree professors at South African universities, he became an Emeritus Professor
and an Honorary Research Fellow.
Butler wrote several autobiographies -- like Karoo Morning, Bursting World and
Stranger to Europe -- as well numerous poetry and plays.
According to Rhodes University, nearly a third of his poems are about "death or loss", and many
of the rest are about "parting failure or difficult self-denial". His poetry is said to be thoughtful and
the result of a deep religious introspection.
Butler helped revive the National Arts Festival at the 1820 Settler Monument that looms over
Grahamstown, and was a prime mover behind the National English Literary Museum (NELM) as well as
the Institute for the Study of English in Africa (ISEA). He was the founder of the influential poetry
publication, New Coin.
Indeed, his lifelong concern was to promote South African writers in the writing of English, an occupation
which was to lead him to being attacked as a representative of the "Anglophone white cultural
establishment".
His insistence upon what he called "standards" was seen as yet another, if more subtle, means of
excluding black expression during the peak years of apartheid. This criticism pained him because that
certainly was not his purpose.
Butler was recognised for his work in the English Language by receiving Honorary Doctorates from Natal
University, the University of the Witwatersrand and from Rhodes itself.
He died in Grahamstown in April 2001. He was 83 years of age.
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
|
TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
There are two stanzas to this poem. What is the theme of each? (4)
[Need help?]
Stanza 1 is a prayer to God to find a way to save South Africa and its countrymen.
Stanza 2 is a comment that, despite the harsh times, some people have nevertheless stayed pure and
resolute.
|
"Though now few eyes
Can see beyond
Our tragic times
Complexities."
- What is alliteration? Comment on the alliteration in the 3rd line. (4)
[Need help?]
Alliteration is the repetition of a consonant for lyrical or poetic purposes.
In line 3, there is the alliterated "t" in "tragic times". It creates the sound of dismay or
anguish.
|
- How many syllables are there in each line of this poem? (2)
[Need help?]
Generally there are FOUR syllables per line, although there might be a couple of exceptions.
|
- Why would the word "complexities" be on a line by itself? (4)
[Need help?]
The most obvious reason is that this word has exactly four syllables. It must therefore have a line to itself
otherwise it would cause complications with the overall rhythm of the poem.
On the other hand, one might argue a case for the importance of the word itself. By being on a separate
line, the word stands out as being important, causing the reader to focus on its meaning and impact.
|
- What then is the poet's point when he uses the word "complexities"? (4)
[Need help?]
The poet is making the point that the troubles afflicting South Africa were complicated. There was no easy
solution.
It was not a case of "I am right, you are wrong." There were many rights and many wrongs -- and
often most individual people were both right and wrong at the same time.
|
"Dear God ordain
Such deeds be done
Such words be said
That men will praise
Your image yet."
- Why does the poet say, "Dear God"? (4)
[Need help?]
This is a form of addressing God. A polite letter would always begin, "Dear . . . "
On the other hand, the word "dear" is often used to show exasperation: "Oh dear, no!" or
"Dear me, no!".
In this latter sense, the poet's addressing God in the words "Dear God" could reveal a cry of
anguish from a tortured soul.
|
- What is the meaning of the word "ordain"? Why do you think the poet has chosen this
word? (4)
[Need help?]
"Ordain" literally means "make it so".
In the Catholic and Anglican Churches, the word is also used to denote the consecration of a person to
Holy Orders, i.e. ordaining a person to be a priest or a bishop.
The poet has used this word, therefore, in both these senses: if God ordains something, it becomes so
-- and it becomes consecrated as a holy thing.
|
- To what "image" is the poet referring? (4)
[Need help?]
This could be complicated. There might be several answers.
It's certainly God's image that the poet is speaking about. For the Christian, one might be tempted to
argue that Jesus Christ is the image of God whom the poet is calling upon to bring salvation to this
country.
On the other hand, the image of God might be simply peace, good will, love of people for other people.
Can you think of anything else?
|
"Through rotting days
Beaten, broken,
Some stayed pure."
- We have another example of alliteration here. What is it? Why has this alliteration been
chosen? (4)
[Need help?]
The repetition of "b" in "Beaten, broken."
The alliterated "b" has the effect of creating a beating sound. It's a strong sound of a people being
destroyed through the use of violence, of them being beaten down just as a person would destroy a
building by beating its walls with a sledgehammer.
|
- What would be the meaning of "pure" in the context of this poem? (2)
[Need help?]
The poet appears to be using words which have a religious connotation. "Pure" in this sense would
mean holy, dedicated to God, dedicated to bringing about good.
|
|
