[0:01]Hello everyone. The following presentation is on the poem This Winter Coming by Karen Press. This is the seventh poem on the list of the new English Home Language Poetry for 2023 and the next few years to come.
[0:23]The following is some background information about the poet. Karen Press was born in Cape Town in 1956. She grew up in the height of apartheid. Currently, she is a full-time writer and editor. As part of her career, her focus is on the empowerment and upliftment of people through education and writing. Her poems and this one in particular, highlight the unequal society created by apartheid and the damage done by the apartheid regime.
[1:05]Let us take a look at the summary of this poem. This poem uses an extended metaphor. Remember that an extended metaphor is where two ideas run alongside each other throughout a poem. In this case, a winter storm describes how the political situation in South Africa in 1986 is a storm developing.
[1:36]This particular storm is wanting to wash away the apartheid system. This storm can also be a symbol of the apprehension around the government's renewed State of Emergency. Let us for a moment consider the dictionary definition of a State of Emergency. A State of Emergency is when a government introduces special measures such as increased powers for the police or army, usually because of civil disorder or because of a natural disaster. In the context of apartheid, the State of Emergency would have definitely been implemented due to civil disorder. The people caught in the storm are described - men, women, children and those who died in the struggle for change.
[2:37]Let's consider the title of this poem. The use of the word this indicates that it is not a general winter that is approaching, but rather a specific one. Taking into account the background of the poet, it can be assumed that the winter is specific to Cape Town. Cape Town winters are known to be very harsh with cold and heavy storms. At the time that this poem was written, South Africa was on the brink of civil war, a figurative winter.
[3:17]Let us read through the poem. Walking in the thick rain of this winter we have only just entered, who is not frightened? The sea is swollen, churning in broken waves (violent continual motion), around the rocks, the sand is sinking away. The seagulls will not land under this sky, this shroud falling (something that covers or conceals), who is not frightened? In every part of the city, sad women climbing onto buses, dogs barking in the street, and the children in every doorway crying. The world is so hungry, madam's house is clean and the women return with slow steps to the children, the street, the sky tolling like a black bell. These women are a tide of sadness, they will drown the world.
[4:17]Who is not frightened? On every corner men standing, old stumps in the rain, tombstones engraved with open eyes, watching the bright cars full of sated faces (more than satisfied) pass them, pass them, pass them, who is not frightened? Into the rain the children are running, thin as the barest twigs they kindle a fire to fight the winter, the bare bodies, a raging fire of dead children and the sky collapsing under centuries of rain, the wind like a mountain crying. Who is not frightened of this winter coming upon us now?
[5:04]Lines one and two read, walking in the thick rain of this winter we have just entered. This poem begins with the idea of someone walking through the rain. The fact that this rain is described as thick, emphasizes just how heavy this downpour is.
[5:27]It also creates an ominous dark atmosphere of oppression. This storm is specific to this winter, which could figuratively refer to the apartheid government's renewed State of Emergency, in which the government's police and the army would have even more power and force. The fact that this winter is one we have only just entered, creates an ominous apprehensive tone, suggesting that the sense of fear will increase as the season progresses. We can imagine a reference to possible violence and uprising against the apartheid government. Because we have only just entered this winter, or the State of Emergency, the worst is still yet to come.
[6:16]Line three asks, who is not frightened? This rhetorical question suggests the experience of fear and apprehension during this time is universal. It is felt by all South Africans, because violence in response to the apartheid government is very likely at this stage.
[6:41]Lines four and five form the first half of the second stanza of this poem. At face value, these lines could simply be read as an observation of nature, but the imagery and the diction suggest an atmosphere of aggression and destructiveness. Note the diction, or the poet's choice of words, in describing the sea. She uses the word swollen, churning and broken to describe a very turbulent ocean. This is a metaphor comparing a violent sea to the looming unrest and violence that will possibly occur in South Africa in response to the apartheid government. The idea that this will be a violent continual motion, suggests that once the resistance begins, it will continue its course. Remember that the storm is likened to all those who will fight against the apartheid regime. Literally, a storm will result in rough seas. The rough seas symbolize a violent South Africa. Line five reads, around the rocks, the sand is sinking away. At the moment, the rocks, which may be likened to South Africa, are being held up by the sand. However, the sand is sinking away because the rough waters are eroding the sand, and thus the rocks will no longer be held up. This means that when the violence and unrest begin as a fight against the apartheid regime, South Africa is going to lose its stability as a country. Because of this, there is reason for South Africans to be afraid.
[8:37]Line six states, the seagulls will not land. Even the seagulls, that are strong sea birds, can sense the impending danger, violence and instability of the world caused by the storm. This image adds to the sinister ominous mood of the poem. The seagulls won't land under this sky. What is under this sky is symbolic of the present conditions in South Africa. The sky is described as this shroud falling. A shroud is a cloth used to cover dead bodies in preparation for a funeral. In this metaphor, the sky is compared to a shroud used to wrap dead bodies. The dark sky caused by the storm is going to cover, conceal or fall over South Africa.
[9:33]In other words, this rain, or the resistance to the apartheid regime that is soon going to follow, paired with the cold from the winter, or the government State of Emergency, is possibly going to be fatal. We have anaphora in line eight. The rhetorical question is repeated. The repetition of who is not frightened, heightens the tense mood of the poem.
[10:05]In the third stanza of this poem, the speaker moves from an observation of nature, to an analysis of the social structures and inequalities of the city. Lines nine to 11 read, in every part of the city, sad women climbing onto buses, dogs barking in the street, and the children in every doorway crying. What we can picture in our minds here, are the domestic workers traveling to the white suburbs to clean white people's homes. These women are described as sad as they leave their homes with dogs barking in the streets, unsheltered from the impending storm. These women also have to leave their children who are crying in the doorways of their homes so that these women can make a living.
[11:03]Stanza three describes the return of the domestic workers to their families at the end of their work day. This stanza emphasizes the inequality and the segregation that was created by the apartheid government. In line 12, the world is described as so hungry. Here we have an example of hyperbole. Literally, the starvation and state of poverty the oppressed people are in are emphasized. Figuratively, we could say that the emphasis is how the oppressed are starved of their human rights.
[11:46]Line 12 continues to say that madam's house is clean. Particularly in South Africa, we know that the term madam was a term of superiority used to address white women during the apartheid era. It is ironic here that the madam's house is clean and the children have been tendered to, but the domestic workers children were left crying in the doorways of their homes. These women are described as returning home to the children with slow steps, suggesting they are exhausted and defeated. Upon their return, the sky is tolling like a black bell. We have a simile here. The sky is compared to a black bell. Not only is the sky also dark in color, but it is tolling or ringing like a bell that is rung at funerals, announcing a death. This creates a foreboding or ominous mood. The sky is dark because of the storm. Remember that the storm represents the potential uprising against the apartheid government. We can ask ourselves, does this mean that South Africa will face mass death and destruction?
[13:10]Amidst a storm and a potential uprising against the apartheid government's impending State of Emergency, these women are described in line 15 as a tide of sadness. In this line, we have a metaphor. The extent of the women's sadness is so great, it is compared to a sea. Their sadness is a high tide coming in. They will drown the world. This line continues the metaphor from lines four and five, in which a sea that is swollen and dangerous is described.
[13:52]In these lines here, the danger of the storm, or the uprising, does not come from a place of anger, but rather from a place of deep sadness in these women. Even though these women seem to be helpless in making change to their situation, the words suggest otherwise. Their despair is so overwhelming, it will drown, in other words, cause death and destruction to many. The anaphora, or the rhetorical question, appears again. Emphasizing that everyone, all South Africans should feel apprehensive.
[14:38]Stanza four continues to highlight the social divide, in which the lives of the privileged few are contrasted with the hunger and poverty of the masses. The men are now described as standing on every corner. Perhaps in our imagination, we can picture men who are unemployed and are standing at street corners, waiting for someone to come along and offer them work. These men are referred to as old stumps in the rain. We have a metaphor here. These men are compared to tree stumps. They were once fully thriving trees, but their power and ability to grow and thrive freely, have been cut down by the apartheid system, and now they are more dead than they are alive. These men are also compared to tombstones engraved with open eyes. In this metaphor, these men are compared to cold, hard tombstones. Their open eyes are their only signs of life.
[15:49]While these men are sitting alongside the road, waiting for someone to offer them work, they are watching the bright cars passing by. The occupants of these cars are described as having sated faces, that are more than satisfied. The word sated means to have an appetite that has fully been satisfied. The privileged people in these cars are not only sheltered, literally and figuratively from the storm, but they are also well fed, almost overfed. This idea contrasts with the idea in line 12 of this poem, in which the world is so hungry.
[16:36]These men watch these cars belonging to the privileged pass them, pass them, pass them. The repetition of these words emphasizes how the cars don't ever stop, and how for some of the privileged few, the poor masses are simply invisible. Some might pass them out of fear, or out of guilt, or perhaps a refusal to confront the reality of social inequality. Line 23 is the anaphora, or the repetition of the rhetorical question, who is not frightened? This question is a reminder to the reader that something has to change in this society.
[17:27]Line 24 mentions, into the rain the children are running. Literally, this could simply mean children playing in the rain. However, figuratively, this line could be interpreted in two ways. Firstly, it could refer to how the response of the children differs from the adults who are fearful of the metaphorical storm, or the political unrest. The children are innocent and therefore, they might not be aware of the fact that they are also victims of apartheid. The second interpretation could be a reference to the children who ran through the storm knowingly. This particular poem was written during the year of the 10th anniversary of the Soweto Uprising. These protests were led by black school children. They were running through a storm of their own creation. The children are described as thin as the barest twigs. Here we have a simile, comparing how skinny these children are to twigs, emphasizing their poverty-stricken situations. These children kindle a fire to fight the winter. The literal meaning is simply that these children light a fire to keep them warm during the cold winter. Figuratively, however, the fire represents the fight the youth will start against the apartheid system and the government State of Emergency, which remember, are represented by the idea of a winter.
[19:15]The children are described as having bare bodies in line 26. Literally, this would refer to the children in poor conditions who might lack warm clothing during the winter. Line 27 states, a raging fire of dead children. This could be, perhaps, another reference to the children who died in violent uprisings, like the Sharpeville Massacre and the Soweto Uprising. The word raging suggests the passion of the children and the maliciousness of the apartheid system. In line 28, the sky is collapsing. The dark sky can be a symbol of oppression, but it is now collapsing or falling apart. This gives a sense that the apartheid regime has to come to an end soon. The sky is collapsing under centuries of rain.
[20:15]This could be likened to the idea of the suffering that was endured under the apartheid regime for so long. The time for change has come. However, due to the impending State of Emergency and the rising tensions of the resistance, things might get worse before they become better.
[20:43]Line 29 reads, the wind like a mountain crying. This could possibly suggest that the rain, the suffering, the sadness and the rage, like a wind, will bring the mountain to tears as the violent storm approaches. Note how the poem ends on another rhetorical question. Who is not frightened of this winter coming upon us now? This winter is just about to arrive. It is imminent and frightening for everyone, including those privileged and unaffected by the apartheid system. In other words, the upcoming political situation in South Africa and the imminent State of Emergency can only mean terrible and frightening times for us, all South Africans.
[21:37]The themes evident in this poem include the consequences of apartheid, the desire for change, impending social upheaval, political instability and violence in the fight for freedom, the theme of death and the theme of destruction. The tone throughout the poem includes the tone of anger, rebellion, defiance, and the tone of fear. Lastly, let us consider the form and structure of this poem. This poem is written in free verse, meaning it has no particular rhythm or rhyme scheme. Stanza one is an introduction to the storm and the recurring rhetorical question. Stanza two describes the storm approaching across the ocean. Stanza three describes the women leaving their homes to go to work in the white suburbs. Stanza four describes the men sitting on corners hoping for work. Stanza five, the last stanza, describes the children running in the rain, and how they will kindle a fire to overcome the cold winter.
[22:58]Thank you for watching this presentation on the poem This Winter Coming by Karen Press. Please keep an eye out for the remaining poems for Grade 12 English Home Language.
