Once Up a Time by Gabriel Okara Flashcards
What is the content of Once Upon a Time?
In the poem, the father is telling his son how things used to be. The father says that people used to be sincere, but is now superficial and seeks only to take from others. He also tells the child that he has learned to be just like these people, but at the same time does not want to act way. The parent wants to be a sincere as the son. He also realize that he’s accepting the culture of westerners and is gradually affected by the culture.
Themes of Once Upon a Time
Themes: The themes explored throughout the poem are childhood experiences, hypocrisy, loss of Innocence, desire and dreams. All of this because the nostalgia of the persona.
Childhood experiences reference
In the first three stanzas of the poem, childhood experiences of the persona were expressed, telling us how things “used to be”.
Hypocrisy reference
Hypocrisy is found on stanza 5, when the persona said “To say ‘Glad to meet you’. without being glad; and to say ‘It’s been nice talking to you’, after being bored.” This shows the hypocritical behaviour the persona is behaving, he says things that he doesn’t agree on. The persona hides behind falseness and dishonesty, to coverup true meaning and real emotions he is feeling.
Loss of Innocence reference
The theme “loss of Innocence”, is explored in stanzas 4,5,6. In stanzas 5, the persona said “I want to unlearn all these muting things” ; this suggests that he wants to silence his “bad habits”, and learn how to be sincere again. He wants to get rid of his false laugh which “shows only my teeth like a snake’s bare fangs” - the comparison makes the false and mask-like smile seem dangerous. Through the two quotes, the persona regrets the loss of his innocence.
Desire and dream reference
Both desire and dreams are mentioned throughout the whole poem, bust on the 2nd last stanza the person I said “I want to be what I used to be when I was like you. I want to unlearn learn all these muting things. Most of all I want to relearn how to laugh”, he wants to be like his son, innocent and unknown to all the false sincerity. He wants to erase all of the “bad habits” from his mind, and learn how to laugh genuinely, rather than fake and false.
What is the aim of Once Upon a Time?
The aim of this poem is to expresse Okara’s concern for the influence of the Western world on age-old African custom. The poem is also meant to outline the fake personalities of numerous people, and encourage them to return to a natural and innocent state, after reading the poem.
Mood and Tone of Once Upon a Time
The mood of the poem is nostalgic. The persona is remembering how things are different when he was younger, like his son. The tone is connected to the mood, and the response the poet gives to the nostalgia, is disconsolate. But throughout the poem, the tone also changes when there’s a use of metaphors, similes and repetition.
Two metaphors in Once Upon a Time?
“laugh with their teeth, while their ice-block cold eyes search behind his shadow’. This gives off very negative, fake and cold description. This affects the tone of the poem that now becomes sinister and bitter.
“They used to shake hands with their hearts’, this image reveals true and genuine emotion.
One simile in Once Upon a Time?
“conforming smiles like a fixed portrait smile.” This compares people smiles to ones in portraits. Portraits are usually very stiff and uncomfortable. Therefore, the implication is that the smiles are fake, insincere and stiff. The smiles are just plastered on the face, without any emotion behind them. The smiles are forced for the sake of societal expectations.
Repetition in Once Upon a Time?
“once upon a time” is repeated at the beginning and the end of the poem. “Once upon a time” are usually signals the beginning of children fairy tales. Therefore, it is implied that the persona is nostalgic about the past.
