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Epitaph
by Dennis Scott

ANALYSIS

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Title Author Form Literal Meaning Figurative Meaning Themes Interconnectivity

LETS LOOK AT THE TITLE

What does the title mean?

EPITAPH

TITLE

An Epitaph is a short text honouring a deceased person, strictly speaking that is inscribed on their tombstone or plaque

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AUTHOR INFO
Dennis Scott was born in Jamaica in 1939. He had a distinguished career as a poet, playwright, actor, dancer in the Jamaican National Dance Theatre, an editor of Caribbean Quarterly and teacher. His first collection, Uncle Time (1973) was one of the first to establish the absolutely serious use of nation language in lyric poetry. He died at the early age of fifty-one in 1991

EPITAPH
They hanged him on a clement morning, swung between the falling sunlight and the women's breathing like a black apostrophe to pain. All morning while the children hushed their hopscotch joy and the cane kept growing he hung there sweet and low. At least that's how they tell it. It was long ago and what can we recall of a dead slave or two except that when we punctuate our island tale they swing like sighs across the brutal sentences, and anger pauses till they pass away.

FORM

What structure does the poem take? Is it a sonnet or is it written in free verse? FREE VERSE

LITERAL MEANING
What is the poem about? A man was hanged in the morning and left there for women and children to see.

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LITERAL MEANING (CONTD)

The tale of the hanging of slaves has been passed down from generation to generation but is questioned by the narrator since they did not care about slaves. Those who re-tell the tales of hanging in recent times connect with their ancestors; their writing is filled with emotion.

LITERAL MEANING (CONTD)

Poets who WRITE BACK. Caribbean people were unable to tell their side of the story until recently Photo: Caribbean writers at Carifesta 1995, Trinidad. L-R: Derek Walcott, Martin Carter, George Lamming, Earl Lovelace, Ernest Mootoosamy (Guadeloupe), Kamau Brathwaite. Photo (c) by Sherwin Griffith. http://mahanaimnotes.blogspot.com/2010/05/selectbibliography-of-west-indian.html

CHARACTERS AND NARRATION

Characters: They, him, women, children, we Narration: 3rd person

FIGURATIVE MEANING

What literary devices can you identify in the poem? Why does the author choose to use these?

FIGURATIVE MEANING (CONTD)

Simile like a black apostrophe to pain Comparison of the victims shape to that of an apostrophes

they swing like sighs comparing the words to emotional release

FIGURATIVE MEANING (CONTD)

Metaphor we punctuate our island tale the brutal sentences non-literal comparisons exploring the Caribbean peoples use of language in order to express self and tell tale

FIGURATIVE MEANING (CONTD)

Alliteration breathing like a black... hushed/their hopscotch joy they swing like sighs influences the rhythm of the poem

FIGURATIVE MEANING (CONTD)

Personification anger pauses/till they pass away Anger is given human-like characteristics to show that it is so much that it has taken on a life of its own

FIGURATIVE MEANING (CONTD)

Irony They hanged him on a clement morning The word clement means merciful. The narrator is using irony to show that although the executioners believed that they were exacting mercy those close to the victim knew otherwise

FIGURATIVE MEANING (CONTD)

Allusion sweet and low reference to the Negro gospel (spiritual) Swing Low, Sweet Chariot

THEMES
Bearing in mind that: The theme reveals the connection between the literary work (the world created by the author's imagination) and the outside world What main ideas (themes) can you identify in the poem? Can you give examples to justify your choice of theme?

THEMES

Injustice

INTERCONNECTIVITY
After having discovered the themes How do these relate to other poems you have already covered or are yet to cover? How does the content contrast with other poems?

INTERCONNECTIVITY

The Lynching Claude McKay