Join Our Groups
SUNRISE
Jwani
Mwaikusa.
Behold!
The sun has arisen,
And with it the sons of the land have arisen too
Forward they go,
Well armed,
Singing praises to the beauty of the sunrise,
With the determination of long-term warriors,
Challenging the enemy
With the courage of a free mind
And the vigour of a clear purpose.
Sit and wait brethren,
Wait and see what glory they bring at sunset;
How they pay homage to the land -
And their people!
INTRODUCTION
Sunrise is a sonnet written by the late Tanzanian
professor, Jwani Mwaikusa (1952-2010) that clearly depicts the subject of
Struggle for change. It goes a step ahead to show that there are times when
armed struggle is the only means possible to attain the victory over your
enemy. But it also capitalizes the importance of unity in such a struggle.
Moreover, he shows that in any fight there should be a clear purpose of what
you really want to achieve at the end of the struggle.
THEMATIC
ANALYSIS
Like most sonnets they centre on only one subject.
This one is no exception. The typical theme is the struggle for freedom. The
rest are just the tools to help win the battle such as unity, sacrifice and
awareness.
ARMED
STRUGGLE AGAINST IMPERIALISM /OPPRESSION
The poet shows that these people have been under
the burden of oppression but now they have started up a struggle against their
‘enemy’. They are hopeful that at the end of the struggle the victory will be
theirs and they will bring glory, pay homage to the land and their people.
Wait and
see what glory they bring at sunset.
How they
pay homage to the land
And their
people.
UNITY
Unity is a vital tool in any struggle. If people
are united against their common enemy the battle becomes lighter for them than
fighting individually. In the poem the ‘sons of the land’ rose in unity, and
marched forward with determination.
SACRIFICE
Any armed struggle needs both courage and
sacrifice. Because it implies that either you kill somebody or somebody kills
you. The sons of the land seem to be well armed and march forward with
determination and they challenge the enemy without fear. Just at the beginning
of the struggle they just sing songs of praise which shows that they have hopes
of winning the battle.
Forward
they go
Well
armed
Singing
praises to the beauty of the sunrise,
With the
determination of long-term warriors
Challenging
the enemy
With the
courage of free mind
AWARENESS
Awareness is an important tool in so far as the
liberation of the oppressed is concerned. If you don’t know who your enemy is,
how to fight against your enemy and what your purpose is, please don’t go for
it. The sons of the land are very aware of their enemy, they are aware of the
means to fight against the enemy (armed struggle) and they have a clear
purpose. They have the reasons to fight against the enemy.
With the
courage of free mind
And the
vigour of a clear purpose
RELEVANCE
The poem may still be relevant to us today although
we are not under colonialism. There are people, who fight for their civil
rights today with unity. Awareness is still needed today for the liberation of
the oppressed. There are people who sacrifice their lives for the betterment of
their societies. Some of them are imprisoned as they fight against social evils
in our societies.
GUIDING QUESTIONS (NECTA
2011)
a) What
is the poem about?
The poem is about the sons of the land who have risen
up singing the beauty of the sunrise. They challenge the enemy waiting for
victory at sunset. This is to say, they have started up a struggle for
redemption of their land and hope to bring victory at the end of the struggle.
b) For
whom does the poem tell us that the sun has risen?
The sun has risen for the sons of the land which
symbolically means the oppressed ones; the peasants, workers, or the
proletariat class.
c) What
does the word “sunrise” symbolize?
The word ‘sunrise’ symbolises the beginning of the struggle just as it signifies the beginning of a
new day.
d) What
type of poem is this?
This is a sonnet because it is made up of fourteen
verses.
e) Comment
on the mood and tone of the poem.
Both the tone and mood are optimistic. The sons of the
land have risen up singing with hopes of bringing victory at the end of their
struggle.
f) Comment
on the structure of this poem.
Ø
It
is a free-verse poem with no rhyming pattern.
Ø
There
is variation in the length of verses; some are very short and some very long.
Ø
Also
the poet has employed poetic licence when he says ‘Forward they go” which is not a normal English structure of SVA. ‘They go forward’
g) The
poem contains two major images. Mention them.
Ø
Sunrise this symbolises the beginning of the struggle (or the war of
liberation).
Ø
Sunset this symbolises the end of the struggle.
h) The
poet talks about “challenging the enemy” who do you think the enemy might be?
The enemy might be the colonialists who oppress,
humiliate, and exploit the Africans.
i) What
do we learn from this poem?
Ø
Struggle
for freedom is not a simple thing it needs determination and sacrifice.
Ø
Unity
is very important in any struggle. (the sons have risen with unity)
Ø
Hard
work pays at the end.
Ø
When
you struggle for something you must have a clear purpose (goal to achieve)
EmoticonEmoticon