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PEDESTRIAN TO PASSING
BENZ-MAN
Albert Ojuka (Kenya)
You man
lifted gently
out of
poverty and suffering
We so
recently shared: I say
why splash
the muddy puddle on to
my bare legs
as if still unsatisfied
with your
seated opulence
you must sully the unwashed
with your diesel-smoke and
mud-water.
and force
him buy, beyond his means
a bar of
soap from your shop?
a few years
back we shared a master
today you
have none, while I have
exchanged a
parasite for something worse.
but maybe a
few years is too long a time.
INTRODUCTION
Pedestrian
to passing Benz-man is an ironical poem by a Kenyan poet Albert Ojuka which
compares and contrasts the rich and the poor in African societies. The poet
suggests that the rising middle class in Africa is getting richer and powerful
because of exploiting the poor people. The Benz-man in the poem arrogantly
splashes the muddy puddle onto the legs of the pedestrians so that the
pedestrian may go and buy a bar of soap from his shop. This is to say most of
the problems facing poor people are caused by the rich who later turn them into
opportunities for exploiting the poor people.
THEMES
CLASSES
The poem
depicts two classes in this society. The middle class as represents by the Benz
man; this is a class comprising of arrogant people who own the major means of
production and live luxuriously. The Benz-man for instance owns a shop and
drives an expensive Benz. On the other hand there is a class of poor
people being represented by the pedestrian. This is a class comprising of people
who not only walk on foot as their means of transport but also they can’t even
afford to buy the shoes. Because of arrogance the Benz-man purposely splashes
muddy puddle onto the bare legs of a pedestrian, so as to create a mechanism
which will force the poor man to go and buy a bar of soap from his shop.
Showing his dissatisfaction on the Benz-man’s arrogance, the pedestrian says:
Why splash the muddy puddle on to
My bare legs as if still unsatisfied
With your seated opulence
EXPLOITATION
In this
society the poet shows that the rich are rich because of exploiting the poor.
As seen in the poem the Benz-man exploits the pedestrian. The poet shows that
the Benz-man creates a mechanism that will force the poor pedestrian to go and
buy a bar of soap from his shop. The good thing however is that the pedestrian
is aware of it. He says
Why splash the muddy puddle on to
My bare legs...
***
And force him buy, beyond his means
A bar of soap from your shop?
So the
Benz-man has become a parasite that feeds on the sweat of poor people.
BETRAYAL
The poem
shows the kind of betrayal portrayed by the Benz-man. The Benz-man and the
pedestrian used to be poor and were suffering together but ever since the
Benz-man became wealthy he has forgotten the troubles they shared. He now
despises the pedestrian by splashing the muddy puddle on to his bare feet
instead of helping him raise from poverty the Benz-man. The pedestrian says:
You man lifted gently
Out of poverty and suffering
We so recently shared:
ARROGANCE
The rich man
seems to be arrogant because the success he has achieved. He despises the poor
people who walk on foot simply because he after all owns an opulent (luxury)
Benz. He splashes the muddy puddle on to the pedestrian without considering
that he makes him dirty (sully). The poet says;
You must sully the unwashed
With your diesel-smoke and
mud-water.
This is not
good for a society that needs to prosper in all spheres. The rich must respect
the poor especially knowing that they are rich because of the poor.
POVERTY
The
pedestrian represents poor people whose major means of transport is their own
feet. These ones are looked down upon by those who have gently become rich and
don’t want to share their wealth with the poor. The pedestrian is still living
a poor life as he confesses in lines 1-3.
You
man lifted gently
Out of poverty and suffering
We so recently shared:
This is to
say he is still poor while the Benz-man has lifted himself out of poverty and
he now has a decent life. The poet shows that the pedestrian cannot even afford
to buy shoes but walks on bare feet.
GUIDING QUESTIONS
Ø
What is the poem about?
The poem is about comparison and contrasts between the
rich and the poor classes in African societies. The poet suggests that the
rising middle class in Africa is getting richer and powerful because of
exploiting the poor people. This is to say most of the problems facing poor
people are caused by the rich who later turn them into opportunities for
exploiting the poor people.
Ø
What kind of the poem is this?
It is a sonnet poem as it is made up of 14 lines.
Ø
Who is the persona? How do you know?
The persona is a pedestrian
from lower or poor class. This is evident as he complains because the Benz-man
splashes the muddy puddle on to his bare feet.
Ø
What is the
tone and mood?
The tone is lamenting and sad. The persona is sad
because of the way he is mistreated by the Benz-man. This creates a sad and
unhappy mood to the readers/listeners.
Ø
Comment on the structure of the poem.
The poem is made up of only one stanza comprising 14
lines with irregular rhyming scheme.
Ø
Comment on the language use in the poem.
The language used is simple and easy to understand.
There is a good choice of vocabulary that drives home the message and the
central theme easily. The use of words like poverty, suffering, bare legs all
carry the picture of a low class or poor people.
Ø
Figures of speech.
Assonance.
Muddy
puddle
Must
sully
Rhetorical
questions
And
force him to buy beyond his means a bar of soap from your shop?
Onomatopoeia
Why
splash –sound of water
Symbolism
A
parasite stands for exploiter
MESSAGES
Ø
The
high/middle class should consider the welfare of the lower class (majority)
Ø
Exploitation
of the poor by the rich should be discarded
Ø
Betrayal
is not good. It is better to help someone raise from poverty than despising
them because of their poverty
Ø
Poverty
makes people to be undermined and despised. We should fight against poverty.
Ø
It
is not good to be arrogant when you are wealth remember the poor might be rich
one day and you might be poor.
RELEVANCE
The poem is
relevant in a number of ways.
Ø
In
our societies there are people who are humble when they have nothing and are in
need of help, but when they get rich they despise the poor.
Ø
Poverty
is still a common problem in most African countries.
Ø
Exploitation
of the poor by the rich class has not yet ended.
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