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READ THIS
The poet describes a herd of zebra which he sees on the grasslands at dawn. He is enraptured by their
stark beauty as they roam the land freely, and then as a stallion romps with a filly.
NOTE ON THE POET
Roy Campbell was born in Durban in 1901 and was at one stage considered to be one of South Africa's
best poets. His popularity, however, has waned in recent years so that today his poetry is hardly ever
read.
Educated at Durban High School, he spent much of his youth in the great outdoors -- something that is
reflected in many of his poems like "The Zebras". As soon as the Great War was over, however,
he moved to England where he attended Oxford University.
He married Mary Garman, a marriage which did not carry his parents' consent and therefore meant that,
for a time at least, Campbell was struck off from his inheritance. He had two daughters by this marriage.
In 1925, he returned to South Africa and founded a literary magazine called Voorslag which was
meant to promote cultural development amongst the Afrikaners whom the poet regarded as backward and
uncouth.
Very soon disillusionment set in, however, and he returned to England. His disillusionment continued even
there as he fell foul of his own fellow poets -- and even of his wife whom he found was not averse to
lesbian affairs.
During the early 1930s he settled in the Provence region of France -- the scene for one of his greatest
poems, "Horses on the Camargue". During this time he was slowly drawn to Catholicism and
drunkenness.
In the mid-1930s, due to a loss in a civil lawsuit, the Campbell family fled to Spain where the poet became
an avid supporter of the fascist dictator, General Franco. It was this support which saw the poet's
reputation slump amongst his literary colleagues.
When World War II broke out, the poet moved back to England and enlisted for military duty. It was
during those years that he became close friends with the Welsh poet and fellow drunkard, Dylan Thomas.
After the war, the poet returned to the Iberian Peninsula but this time settled in Portugal. He died in a car
accident over the Easter weekend of 1957.
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
From the dark woods that breathe of fallen showers,
Harnessed with level rays in golden reins,
The zebras draw the dawn across the plains.
- Comment on the sustained metaphor of the zebras being harnessed. (4)
[Need help?]
The poet describes the zebras as being harnessed and pulling the dawn across the plains.
The idea of the harness with its straps is probably derived from the stripes down the side of the zebras'
faces. In this case, he is referring to the white stripes which appear golden in the morning light, looking
like gold reins on black faces.
The zebras are harnessed to the sun, harnessed to the dawn.
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- What figure of speech or language device is found in the words, "draw the dawn"? What is the
purpose of using this figure of speech? (4)
[Need help?]
This is alliteration: the repetition of a certain consonant which, in this case, is the "d".
This is a poetic device whose purpose is to enhance the musical quality of the poem, enriching its sound
when read.
At the same time, the "d" is a strong sound, emphasising the strength of the zebras in pulling the
dawn across the plain.
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The sunlight, zithering their flanks with fire,
Flashes between the shadows as they pass
Barred with electric tremors through the grass
Like wind along the gold strings of a lyre.
- Explain the sustained image of the musical instruments as used in these lines. (4)
[Need help?]
Musical instruments, when properly played, make a beautiful sound. By using the sustained image of the
musical instruments, therefore, the poet is able to enrich the tone of this poem, giving it a lyrical, tranquil
and melodious tone.
There's a sort of alchemy at play here, using an image of beautiful music to turn the setting into magic.
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The poet speaks of the "electric tremors" being "like wind along the gold strings of a lyre".
- Comment on the suitability of the words "electric tremors" as a description of the movement the
poet is portraying. (4)
[Need help?]
Electricity is the energy of all being. How many times does a person speak of the electricity that existed
between someone and her dating partner -- an image which reflects a real bonding, a positive power
between them?
Static electricity attracts things, gives something the power to draw in.
At the same time, electricity flowing in high tension power lines sometimes makes a noise like the wind.
The poet is attempting to paint all of this into his image. There is the electricity and there is the soft
musical quality of the strings of the lyre vibrating. All of this combines to create a tension of sound and
energy.
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- Why would the poet used the word "wind" to describe this movement? (4)
[Need help?]
Wind can be gentle or it can be powerful. Wind therefore captures the energy of the setting, a soft, gentle
power but a power nevertheless. Wind also encapsulates a whispering sound, the whispering of magic,
the whispering of the music across the plains.
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- What does the poet mean when he speaks of "the gold strings of a lyre"? (4)
[Need help?]
Just as the lyre has strings which reflect the light, so the zebras have white stripes which reflect golden-
red in the dawn light. The beauty of the scene is the beauty of the lyre, its strings shining while vibrating
in a magical sound across the plains.
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Into the flushed air snorting rosy plumes
That smoulder round their feet in drifting fumes.
- In what way could the "flushed air" be "snorting rosy plumes"? (4)
[Need help?]
The air is filled with clouds of steam as the animals breath out in the early morning, their warm breaths
condensing on the chilly air.
The plumes of air are rosy-orange in colour, reflecting the colour of the rising sun but also reflecting the
scarlet of the flowers at their feet. The "snorting" is the noise made by the zebras as they exhale.
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- Explain the value of the image "snorting rosy plumes". (6)
[Need help?]
"Snorting" is the sound made by the zebras as they exhale, usually giving vent to some excitement
-- as in this case where they have seen the fillies.
The "plumes" are the clouds of steam that rise up as the zebras exhale, their warm moist breath
rising as a mist in the cold morning air.
The plumes are "rosy" because they are reflecting the orange colour of the dawn sun as well as
the scarlet of the flowers through which they are walking.
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- What are the "drifting fumes"? (4)
[Need help?]
A "fume" is usually a powerful smell. In this case, the poet is referring to the powerful smell of the
scarlet flowers at the zebras' feet.
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- Comment on the irony of the "Engine of beauty volted with delight" but with the "dove-like
voices". (4)
[Need help?]
The poet is drawing attention to the power of the male zebras. They are like engines, beautiful engines
which are full of energy or powered by great volts of electricity -- "volted". But they are also
machines of delight.
The irony is that these machines of power and delight have voices which, in complete contrast, are tranquil
and gentle -- "dove-like voices".
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