Ti me i s the 1960' s , dur i ng Aparthei d. The ti tl e accuratel y refl ects that the po em i s abo ut bei ng “i n ex i l e”. The s peaker has fl ed hi s bi rth l and (o n hi s o wn acco r d o n an O x fo rd Uni ver s i ty Scho l ar s hi p i n the UK) & no w l i ves abr o ad, i n a fo rei gn l and. He feel s as i f he i s i n ex i l e. He i s al s o i n tw o mi nds .
C o ndi ti o n o f s eper ati o n fro m o ne' s l and, ho me o r peo pl e.
In Exile Arthur Nortje (1942-1970)
Burn with a sudden intensity
Open skies flare wide enough
Image
Stanz as 1-4: Many i mages that po i nt to the s peaker ' s year ni ng to r eturn to hi s ho mel and. Thes e i mages al l s ugges t the po s i ti ve & upl i fti ng ro l e o f memo ry i n br i ngi ng abo ut co mfo r t.
Enjambment
to make me vaguely anxious. Small storm-clouds “i” assonance
Nimbus* wisps “p” alliteration
Enjambment
“a” assonance
trace patterns of the past.
“e” assonance
To ne s hi fts : As the s peaker mo ves betw een the pres ent (i n ex i l e) and the pas t (memo ri es o f hi s ho me co untr y), the s ens e o f es trangement fr o m bo th ex i l e and ho me i s deepened. Memo ry can be damagi ng. Stanz as 1-4: The s peaker ' s memo r i es o f hi s ti me i n SA keep fl o o di ng back. Thes e memo r i es are tri ggered by what he o bs er ves i n a mo ment o f i ntens e refl ecti o n whi l e l i vi ng i n ex hi l e. The po et us es many verbs thr o ugho ut thi s po em to emphas i s e the i ntens i ty o f the acti o n whi ch he s ees aro und hi m, w hi ch acts as a pro mpt to hi s memo ri es o f ho me that keep w el l i ng up.
Image
“t” alliteration
Wind sweeps between the towers
Image
5
Enjambment
through tunnels, old and new. “h” alliteration
My heart is
Enjambment
hollowed with the boots passing through.
“a” assonance
“g” alliteration
Garments gather and play about Enjambment
“t” alliteration
my limbs: they tremble to a return
Image
10
C o ntr as t: The s peaker ' s dream o f “paradi s e” (l i ne 14) evo ked by hi s effo r ts to fi nd co mfo rt i n memo r y i s co ntr as ted w i th the awarenes s that “My heart i s /ho l l o wed w i th the bo o ts o f pas s i ng ti me” (l i nes 7-8). Image o f the s peaker ' s heart bei ng “ho l l o w ed” evo kes the no ti o n o f the hear t (memo r y) bei ng “ho l l o w ed” o ut. The i dea o f “the bo o ts pas s i ng thro ugh” the s peaker' s hear t i mpl y that memo r y can no l o nger be a s o ur ce o f co mfo r t.
Brief, strong rush of wind Passing
Gust. Leaves and transient* “s” alliteration
Enjambment
Call an image to mind
streetscape conjure up that southern Visual elements of a street
Enjambment Image
blue sky and wind-beautiful Enjambment
day, creating paradise.
Image: Impl i es that i deas abo ut the fi nal retur n can be entertai ned.
Otherwise:
15
the soul decays in exile. C o nj uncti o n: The s peaker “co mes do w n to ear th” wi th the kno wl edge that he canno t ful fi l hi s deep, no s tal gi c des i re to retur n ho me, becaus e o f l i ne 17.
Conjunction
Li ne 17: As the po et tr i es to co nvey hi s feel i ngs o f po s s i bl e ho meco mi ng thr o ugh memo ry, he i s al s o i ntens el y aware o f the hars h real i ty as s o ci ated w i th go i ng back to a pl ace (SA) wher e “wr o ng pi gment has no s co pe”.
“o” assonance
But wrong pigment has no scope, so clot the blue channel of memory.
Image
“s” alliteration
Stanz as 5-6: The s peaker ' s ho pe o f a ho meco mi ng i s ki l l ed o ff al to gether by the facts o f ho w co mpl ex the s i tuati o n i s i n hi s ho me co untry. Thes e two s tanz as pr es ents a real i ty check.
Image: The s peaker mi ght as w el l er as e any memo r i es o f r eturn.
On a sand slope Enjambment
I build a picture of the sea.
20
Li nes 19-20: The s ame as “ bui l d cas tl es i n the s ea” - a daydr eamer.
C o ncl us i o n: The s peaker s tates that “thi s hunger ” fo r ho meco mi ng i s “ beni gn” and ther efo r e no t danger o us .
The grains that slide away Enjambment
are wind-breathed, are stirred by finger. Harmless
Benign, a cloud obscures the sun, this hunger.
*nimbus – storm-cloud *transient - passing
Enjambment Image
Sens e o f res i gnati o n (gi vi ng up) i s co nveyed by i mages i n l i nes 18 (“cl o t the bl ue channel o f memo r y ”) & l i nes 23-24 (“B eni gn, a cl o ud/o bs cures the s un, thi s hunger.”) Thes e i mgages s ugges t that al l the s peaker' s ho pes o f ho meco mi ng are us el es s .
What is the poem about? What is the subject of the poem? Time is the 1960's, during Apartheid. The title accurately reflects that the poem is about being “in exile”. The speaker has fled his birth land (on his own accord on an Oxford University Scholarship in the UK) & now lives abroad, in a foreign land. He feels as if he is in exile. He is also in two minds. The poem resolves around the speaker's desire to go back home, and we learn his feelings through his attempts to remember his homeland. Memory is central to the poem. Who is speaking? A man that fled his home land (South Africa) to go live in the UK. What is the location/setting of the poem? Time is the 1960's, during Apartheid. Images of nature throughout the poem (these are the things he remembers of his homeland). Words such as “skies”, “nimbus”, “wind”, “leaves”, “blue-sky”, “wind-beautiful”, “sand”. “sea”, “cloud” and “sun”.
Themes and messages of the poem: The poem resolves around the speaker's desire to go back home, and we learn his feelings through his attempts to remember his homeland. Memory is central to the poem. Attitudes and feelings in the poem: Emotions and feelings of the speaker: The speaker is longing to go back home and tries to remember his homeland. Tone of the poem: Nostalgic and longing in stanzas 1-4; tone of recognition in stanzas 5-6.
Form and structure of the poem (rhyme, rhythm, line length, stanza length, etc.): No rhyme scheme - free verse (lines with no prescribed pattern or structure).. Made up of six stanzas of 4 lines each. The lack of rhyme scheme and enjambments let the speaker's thoughts , in this case his memories, flow freely. The short stanzas emphasise the fact that his memories are not worth thinking of and that he should no longer long for his homecoming, because it is not a reality any more.
Type of poem: Free verse (lines with no prescribed pattern or structure). 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): YOUR PERSONAL RESPONSE!
