Checking out me History Flashcards
Analyse form in Checking out me History
Agard chooses his form to ensure the message of his poem is inescapable. The form is oral poetry, meant to be almost sung out loud.
Historically, oral poetry is meant to be passed down from generation to generation – this is Agard’s desired effect. He doesn’t want those who are in power to ever be able escape his message or escape the power of his culture – it will live forever in his poem.
We are reminded of the importance of oral history and black history.
Analyse the opening of Checking out me History
Agard shows how he has been controlled by those in power. He begins his poem with ‘’Dem tell me Wha dem want to tell me’’. There’s a sense of refusal due to the lack of standard of English dialetic – the intentional dialetic choice shows he is opposing what they tell him by naming them in his own way. Through ‘’want’’ there’s the implication that they have hidden key parts of his history, this is reiterated by the abbreviated syntax which mirrors how he has lost out.
Analyse the language in Checking out me History
Whereas, Agard references Mary Seacole, who he describes as a ‘’healing star’’. Agard wants to be like Seacole – he wants to guide the reader to historical understanding. The ‘’star’’ has biblical connotations, implication that the reader is enlightened. Furthermore, in Greek Mythology, stars and constellations were the bodies of historical figures. Agard creates Seacole as a beacon of hope for black culture.
Analyse structure in Checking Out me History
Whereas, Agard uses structure to establish his own power and his own culture. The rhymes in stanzas build up, climaxing at the end to emphasize the importance of the black historical figures.
Moreover, the enjambment of compound sentences essentially forces white and black history together, showing how Agard now has the power over them. On top of that, Agard doesn’t use any punctuation in his poem, the poem never stops.
There’s the implication black culture is everlasting. Alternatively, we could be implied that the racist ideas / Eurocentric view on education will never stop, however it will be fought.
Analyse the ending of Checking out me History
Agard, whereas, ends his poem empowering himself. He claims he is ‘’carving out’’ his ‘’identity’’. Through the verb ‘’carving’’, we are reminded of sculpting, implying that his identity is a piece of art – it’s beautiful, permanent and can change the world.
