Thi s po em i s a l ament (mo ur n) fo r

G ener al r eference to the pr o tes ters .

the dead/mo ur nful s o ng to be Sugges t that the po em i s r efl ecti ve.
s ung at a funeral , fo r tho s e
chi l dren gunned do wn whi l e
June 16 marks the anni ver s ar y o f
co nducti ng a peaceful pro tes t. A Young Man's Thoughts Before
the 1976 upr i s i ng begun by
The po et i s s peaki ng i n the 1 s t s cho o l chi l dren i n So w eto to
June the 16th pro tes t agai ns t the co mpul s o ry
pers o n, putti ng hi ms el f i n the
s ho es o f each o f the yo ung us e o f Afr i kaans , the l anguage o f
peo pl e who were gunned do w n Fhazel Johennesse (1956-) o ppr es s i o n. O ver 1 000 peo pl e,
and di ed o n thi s day. It w as a many o f them yo ung, l o s t thei r
nati o nal tragedy, and as s o , was l i ves .
Thet by
fel dayevery
befo co
r e ncer
the pro
nedtes
ci tit zmar
i n. ch. The r o ad o f l i fe l eadi ng wi th twi s ts
Metaphor for life journey & di ffi cul ti es i nevi tabl y up the hi l l
Thi s po em co ncentr ates o n tomorrow i travel on a road to wards the ul ti mate go al , i n thi s
the human as pects r ather Path ahead is twisted & difficult Enjambment
cas e death (metapho r).
than po l i ti cal co nvi cti o ns . that winds to the top of the hill “ br o ad bel ch” br i ngs o ut the
The s acr i fi ces o f the yo ung carefree atti tude o f yo uth.
man, w hi ch i s meani ngful
i take with me only the sweet
“ b” al l i terati o n po rtr ays the
to hi m & l acks materi al Enjambment
s trength o f yo ung peo pl e who
i tems . memories of my youth ar e i n cel ebr ati o n – fr ee & happy.
Continuing pain
Speaker co nveys (makes
kno wn) hi s di s tres s /anx i ety, my heart aches for my mother 5
“ bel ch” o no mato po ei a.
w hi ch s ugges ts that danger
awai ts hi m. for friday nights with friends
“b” alliteration Burp It i s a di r ge: l ament fo r the
“s ” al l i ter ati o n i s cal l ed
s i bi l ance: repr o duces the around a table with broad belch of beer dead o r mo ur nful s o ng to
hi s s i ng s o und o f w o men “s” alliteration be s ung at a funer al .
s o bbi ng & weepi ng. i ask only for a sad song The po et br i ngs o ut the
“s ” al l i ter ati o n i s cal l ed
Hiding sorrows by avoiding eye contact depth o f s ho ck & s adnes s
s i bi l ance: repr o duces
sung by a woman with downturned eyes that the new s o f the
the s adnes s , tear s . Played Strength of age mas s acr e pro duces .
Imagery and strummed by an old man with 10 Deno tes a wr i nkl ed bro w wi th
“ b” al l i ter ati o n s ugges ts Enjambment
“b” alliteration “o” assonance care & s o r ro w. C o nno tes a
s upr es s i o n & o ppr es s i o n.
a broken brow bro ken s pi ri t.
“o ” i s an “s” alliteration
i nterj ecti o n/ex cl amati o n: B l o o d that has been s hed
o sing my sad song sing for me vi o l entl y o n thi s parti cul ar day.
emphas i z es the s peaker ' s
Death Blood/violence
gr i ef. It i s no t a gentl e death but o ne
for my sunset is drenched with red Imagery
w hi ch i s “dr enched w i th r ed”. The
Suns et i s a metapho r fo r death.
l i fe o f many yo ung peo pl e has been
r i pped apar t by po l i ce bul l ets , &
thei r bl o o d fl o ws fr eel y, drenchi ng
the s uns et (& s tr eets ) wi th bl o o d.

Enjambment: The running on of the thought from one line, couplet, or stanza to the next without a
syntactical break/punctuated pause.
Sibilance: a consonant characterized by a hissing sound (like s or sh).
Onomatopoeia: Words that sound like their meanings.
What is the poem about?
What is the subject of the poem?
 The poem communicates the thoughts and feelings of one of the students in 1976 who
would lose his life during the protests of June 16.

Who is speaking?
 The poet places himself in the shoes of one of the students.

What is the location/setting of the poem?

 The poet places himself in the shoes of one of the teenagers who participated in the Soweto uprising
of June 16, 1976. He sees himself the day before the event, foreseeing the tragedy that is due to erupt .
 He is communicating his thoughts and feelings, thus the location is in his head.

Themes and messages of the poem:

 This poem is a dirge: a lament (mourn) for the dead/mournful song to be sung at a funeral, for those
children gunned down while conducting a peaceful protest.

Attitudes and feelings in the poem:

Emotions and feelings of the speaker:
 The student has no feelings of bitterness toward anyone and expresses an acceptance of his
impending fate.

Tone of the poem:

 Melancholic, nostalgic, longing & acceptance.

Form and structure of the poem (rhyme, rhythm, line length, stanza length, etc.):
 Free verse (lines with no prescribed pattern or structure).
 Lack of punctuation and free verse:
reflects flow of thoughts,
suggests inferior education,
reflects a lack of control over the situation,
suggests the simpleness of the speaker’s idea and dream, to receive a better education &
denotes a freedom from all rules, which can also portray a freedom of spirit.
 The run-on-line and enjambment reflects natural speech and a conversational tone.
Type of poem:
 A dirge: a lament for the dead/mournful song to be sung at a funeral, for those children gunned
down while conducting a peaceful protest.

Poetic devices (e.g. metaphors, similes, enjambment, alliteration, personification,

etc.):
 Explained in the poem above.

Personal response to the poem (how do I feel, what impact does the poem have on
me):
 The poet lets me feel personally involved in this tragic day, as if I had been there. I feel sad and
angry for what the young student's had to go through in order to get freedom.
 YOUR PERSONAL RESPONSE!
 Questions from knowledge4africa:

What happened on June 16?

• On 16 June 1976, high school children from Soweto began a protest march for a better
education system. Their banners centred on their hatred at being forced to undertake 50% of
their shooling through the medium of Afrikaans which they regarded as the language of
oppression.
The police intervened, attempting to desperse the youth by means of teargas and live bullets. The
resultant massacre of the youth became the rallying point for rolling mass-action that would
eventually see the end of the hated Apartheid system.
June 16 (Soweto Day) is now a public holiday in SA, under the title of Youth Day.

tomorrow i travel on a road

that winds to the top of the hill

What is the “road that winds to the top of the hill”?

• The road of life leading with twists & difficulties inevitably up the hill towards the ultimate goal, in
this case death.

I ask only for a sad song

What do we call this “sad song”?

• A dirge: a lament for the dead/mournful song to be sung at a funeral, for those children gunned
down while conducting a peaceful protest.

Why does the poet express the poem in the future, giving the impression that he is
writing his thoughts before all the tragic events took place?
• The writing about events of the past as though they still lie in the future bestows a
prophetic/predictive quality to the poem.
• It also helps in bestowing a more graphic quality to the words.