Theory question 110
African PoetryLiterature 2, Section C
Examine the poetic devices used in “Nightfall in Soweto” and “Letters to Martha 17”
Show the model answer
Model answer
Nightfall in Soweto (Mtshali): personification of night as a beast/enemy; similes ('like a dreaded disease'); metaphor of prey; rhetorical questions; imagery of violence.
Letters to Martha (Brutus): simple direct diction; understatement; repetition; images of madness and isolation; conversational letter form.
Effect: both show suffering under apartheid.
Explanation
Discuss devices in both poems with examples and effects.