An African Elegy By Ben Okri

Question 1

Themes

Answer 1

Hope, miracles, poverty, joy and celebration despite sorrow - one who forgets their suffering no longer suffers

Question 2

Content

Answer 2

Traditionally, a elegy is a mournful poem usually written in response to death. It has no rhyme scheme. It is written in the stages of grief, sorrow and praise. Okri’s elegy is not mournful rather reflective and thoughtful. The poet speaks about his African culture with ‘we’ and ‘our’- the people of Africa.
The speaker asks the unique African spirit for answers to life’s paradoxes. He explores the miracle of what being African means to him: the endurance for suffering, the ability to find joy and beauty in the midst of pain, a spiritual union with nature’s bounty, and a irrepresible sense of optimism despite all indicators pointing in the opposite direction. He seems to believe that the tendency to hope and the sensitivity to recognize wonder is a shared trait of Africa’s people.

Question 3

Stanza 1

Answer 3

God created humans so that we could face good and bad times. We are innocent people whose suffering will one day change for something good. The tone in the stanza is bitter yet optimistic