After the pain and the anguish comes the transformation. To the poet, this is exactly what has happened to his beloved African tradition. The title, The Anvil and the Hammer, is, therefore, an appropriate choice. In stanza one, in particular, The clash between the two cultures on the persona’s homeland is conveyed through the sustained use of an image of what happens to a piece of metal in a blacksmith’s shop. Kofi Awoonor’s poem, The Anvil and the Hammer is built around an extended metaphor. Here come more literary techniques employed in the poem, The Anvil and the Hammer. The character and role of Adade in Faceless.The persona expresses the hope that just as the pains of a mother in labour are replaced by joy when a new child is born, African culture may, after all, derive some benefits (joys of new songs) from the painful experience. And listen to the reverberation of our songs Imagery of childbirth.While we lift high the banner of the land Musical imagery / Sound effects/ Auditory imagery.whirlpool of the many rivers’ estuary Imagery of African nationalism.We hear their songs and clamours every day.The poet vividly paints images of the African setting of the poem, The Anvil and the Hammer. Caught between the anvil and the hammer.Here are some examples of words and expressions that evoke images of the violent clash between African and European culture and the resulting pain this has caused: The poet also uses the imagery of violence to depict the pain and trauma his beloved African tradition has been subjected to as a result of its interaction with European culture. The expressions below evoke images of the new foreign culture which, to the persona, needs to be accepted with caution. Recommended for you: Types of imagery in Literatureīut at the same time, Kofi Awoonor sees a tradition that has suffered so much from the onslaught of foreign culture that it has become weak and therefore in danger of dying off.On the one level, African culture, with its tenderness, is viewed as what is in the best interest of the African. These evoke conflicting tactile and visual images. There is a careful selection of words in The Anvil and the Hammer to convey the way the poet views his African tradition. Make ourselves new flags and anthems” Poetic techniques in The Anvil and the Hammerīelow are some poetic techniques that point to the persona’s attitude of admiration mixed with concern for African tradition.
“Determined to ignore these we use snatches
The persona is filled with regret for the way African ways are being diluted by European culture. This fear for the survival of his beloved African culture is based on the realization that Africans are actively relegating their culture to the background. He is deeply concerned that African tradition is in danger of becoming extinct, so to speak. That we can wear them under our new garment,”Ĭlearly, the persona is in a nostalgic mood here. It is for this reason that the persona in The Anvil and the Hammer calls on the ancestors to come to the rescue of the fast-disappearing African traditional values. The persona believes that in spite of modernization brought by Africa’s contact with European culture, there are still positive elements in African culture that Africans must hold on to. Harvest of Corruption Summarized: Plot Summary, Themes and Characters.He sees African tradition as being still useful and relevant even in the face of an onslaught of Western European ways. Kofi Awoonor in his poem, The Anvil and the Hammer, presents a positive view of his traditional African roots. You will also discover the steps to follow and the points to consider to write acceptable essays on the possible examination questions on The Anvil and the Hammer. I will show you possible questions and answer points on The Anvil and the Hammer.īasically, you will discover how the persona views his African tradition in the poem, The Anvil and the Hammer. We are going to look at the poetic devices and themes in the poem, The Anvil and the Hammer. This tutorial is an in-depth analysis of The Anvil and the Hammer, a poem by the Ghanaian poet, Kofi Awoonor.
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