ONCE UPON A TIME – Poem – by Gabriel Okara
(SUMMARY )
“Once Upon A Time” is a poem written
by Gabriel Okara, a famous Nigerian poet. Okara was considered to be one of the
first modern African poets. He uses folklore, religion, myth and social issues
in his works. The present poem was extracted from his book “The Fisherman’s
Invocation”.
The
poem captures a father’s speech to his son. It focuses on a father's concern
over the cultural changes occurring in the African society due to the influence
of Western culture. This poem shows the contrast between the old culture based
on values such as friendliness, genuineness, love, kindness, etc., and the
modern culture based on the materialistic things and artificial relations. In
the poem the father tells his son how things used to be in his childhood or in
the olden days.
In
the past, people used to laugh with their hearts and eyes. This means, they
used to laugh wholeheartedly and genuinely. In contrast, laughter in the
present days is more of a show of teeth. The eyes are cold and looking for
something other than the real person. The speaker says that in the past people
used to shake hands wholeheartedly. That is, their greetings were genuine. But,
in the present days, the people shake hands on one side and search in others
pockets on the other side. That means, they greet others for their own selfish
expectations. In the past days people used to welcome guests wholeheartedly.
But, in the present days, the invitations are too practical and artificial.
Outwardly they say, “Come again”, but inwardly they don’t want others to come
again. Outwardly they say “Good bye”, but they actually mean “good riddance”.
They say “glad to meet you” without ever feeling glad.
The
poet regretfully says that he too has transformed his nature influenced by the modern
culture. He says that he too learnt the way of wearing different faces for
different occasions. He too learnt to smile artificially like a smile in the
photograph. But, he expresses his desire to change his nature and go to the
past days. He seeks the support of his son in this aspect. He says that he wants
to laugh just like his son who laughs innocently. So, the speaker asks his son
to show how he used to laugh when he was in the age of his son.
Thus,
the poem presents the conflict between the old and modern cultures with a tone
of nostalgia.
Prepared
by: NOOJILLA SRINIVAS, Lecturer in English, Govt.Degree College, Alamuru.
Ph:
7981862200
References:
- https://owlcation.com/humanities/Analysis-of-Poem-Once-Upon-A-Time-by-Gabriel-Okara
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Okara
- https://englishnotessummary.blogspot.com/
- youtube.com/c/noojillasrinivaswriter/
- https://www.facebook.com/EnglishComunicationResources/
