Checking Out Me History Flashcards
“Dem tell me/ dem tell me” analysis
Repetition emphasises the difference between British education and his only history
“Wha….” finish and analyse
“Wha dem want to tell me”, phonetic spelling of Caribbean accent links to his own identity. The British schools teach what they want, they don’t teach the history of others, only themselves
“Bandage up…..” finish analyse
“Bandage up me eye to me own history”. Bandage usually used to help aid but here it’s being used as a metaphor that’s blocking him from learning about his history
“Dem tell me bout…” analyse and finish
“Dem tell me bout 1066 and all dat”, only focus is on British history. “All dat” shows he assumes reader already knows all of this as British education is all the same
“No dem….” finish and analyse
“No dem never tell me bout dat” double negative makes him sound angry and assertive that the he wasn’t ever taught about his own history
“Toussaint”significance
Repeated a lot to show how significant toussaint l’ouverture is to him and that they were a key part of his history
“Napoleon/battalion” analysis
Strong rhythm show importance of oral communication, doesn’t loom right read
“With vision” and “toussaint de beacon” analysis
Images of light contrast the blindness he spoke about in the previous stanza
Rhyme of line 23/25
Very basic when he’s talking about British history, shows how basic and silly he thinks british history is to him
Analysis of lines 27-31
Connects the nanny to nature, suggesting she was a spiritual woman. “Freedom river” associates her with hope and freedom. “Fire woman” shows she was passionate and strong as she helped free the slaves
“Dem tell me bout Columbus and 1492…” finish and analyse
“Dem tell me bout comlumbus and 1492 / but what happened to de Caribs and de arawaks to” there are always several sides to history but we are taught only one. We learn about how Columbus explored the world but not what he did to the natives he found, the important people to the poet
“Crimean war” significance
More real than the white history examples he used earlier
Analysis of final stanza
Repetition of first three lines, reminds us of his anger. Finishes with “identity” which sums up the main theme and he’s going to use his own history to create his identity
What is the poem about
The narrator is talking about his identity and how it links to his history. He was taught British history but not about his own history. He lists famous British people but questions why he wasn’t taught about others. He mentions men and woman from other backgrounds who he thinks should also be celebrated.
Form and rhyme of the poem
Written in a mixture of stanza forms. British stanzas use simple rhyme but Caribbean ones use more complex rhyme, making British history seem more childish
