This is the Dark Time My Love - Mervyn Morris Flashcards
What is the significance of the opening line: “This is the dark time, my love”?
This line immediately sets a foreboding tone for the poem, emphasizing a sense of despair and oppression.
The phrase “dark time” is both literal and metaphorical: it could signify a period of colonial domination and the figurative darkness of human suffering during British rule in Guyana (1953).
The address “my love” is ambiguous—it could refer to a romantic partner, but more likely symbolizes the persona’s deep affection for his country, akin to Dennis Brutus’ use of “my dearest love” in It is the Constant Image of Your Face.
“All round the land brown beetles crawl about.”
The “brown beetles” symbolize British soldiers occupying the land, and their crawling movements reflect their overwhelming presence and destructive intent.
The alliteration in “brown beetles” enhances the imagery and rhythmic flow, evoking the sinister advance of military forces.
The use of “beetles” dehumanizes the soldiers, associating them with invasive pests and a mechanical, unfeeling nature.
Interpret the imagery in “The shining sun is hidden in the sky, Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow.”
This line uses pathetic fallacy, where nature mirrors the grim emotions of the oppressed.
“The shining sun is hidden” suggests both literal darkness and the loss of hope and clarity in a time of turmoil.
“Red flowers bend their heads” uses personification to depict mourning and sorrow, their red color symbolizing the bloodshed and violence wrought upon the land.
This line also underscores the collective grief of nature and humanity in the face of war.
What does “It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears” convey?
The phrase “season of oppression” portrays suffering as cyclical, inescapable, and long-lasting.
“Dark metal” likely refers to the weapons and machinery of war—guns, tanks, and other instruments of violence.
Repetition of “dark” throughout the poem creates a persistent atmosphere of doom and hopelessness.
The reference to “tears” adds a human element to the suffering, juxtaposing the coldness of “metal” with the emotional toll of oppression.
Explain the oxymorons in “festival of guns” and “carnival of misery.”
The terms “festival” and “carnival” usually evoke images of joy and celebration, but they are juxtaposed with “guns” and “misery,” symbolizing war and suffering.
This contradiction highlights the grotesque reality of war, where violence becomes a spectacle and suffering is normalized.
The use of oxymorons also reflects the absurdity of finding any glory or purpose in destruction.
These phrases underline the collective despair and chaos of the oppressed under colonial rule.
What is the significance of the rhetorical questions in “Who comes walking in the dark night time? Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass?”
The rhetorical questions personify the oppressive forces of war and colonialism, making them tangible threats in the poem.
“Boot of steel” symbolizes the relentless and mechanical violence inflicted upon the land and its people.
“Tramps down the slender grass” illustrates the destruction of nature and innocence, as the delicate “slender grass” is crushed under the weight of brutality.
These lines emphasize the indiscriminate nature of oppression, trampling both physical and emotional landscapes.
How does “It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader watching you sleep and aiming at your dream” deepen the poem’s themes?
“The man of death” personifies war and colonialism as a single, malevolent entity.
“Strange invader” points to the alien presence of the British soldiers, who disrupt the natural and social harmony of the land.
The invader’s actions—”watching you sleep and aiming at your dream”—suggest both surveillance and the deliberate destruction of aspirations, particularly the dream of independence and peace.
The use of “my love” again reinforces the idea of the persona’s devotion to his country, which is being violated and oppressed by foreign forces.
Literary Device
Personification
Oxymoron
Imagery
Alliteration
Repetition
Rhetorical Questions
Personification
The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.
“the book provides a sustained account of how literary
the poet personifies red flowers by saying that they ‘bend their heads in awful sorrow.’ The flowers are given the quality of emotion and reflecting that emotion. Thus, even the flowers are mourning the dark times of death and sorrow
The poet personifies death as a strange invader to the persona’s country. This man of death is said to not only crush nature under his steel boot, but also watch the persona’s love sleep and aim at destroying her dream.
Alliteration
Repetition of the initial consonant sound in nearby words
the use of alliteration here in ‘brown beetles.’ The persona communicates a landscape filled with the soldiers, corresponding to the atmosphere of war.
Oxymoron
a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction (e.g. faith unfaithful kept him falsely true ).
The poet utilizes two oxymorons here (two contradicting ideas in close succession). He refers to this dark time of war as a festival (associated with joy and celebration) of guns (machines of terror, oppression and violent death). Quite incompatible/contradictory terms.
Rhetorical Question
a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer.
The poet uses rhetorical questions to lead into the reveal of a personification of war and death. It hints at something being closely related to dark times such as these, who has a ‘boot of steel.’ This reflects the oppressive and abusive effect war has, pressing down on not only the environment, but on the people of the country as well. I
Repetition
the action of repeating something that has already been said or written.
Note the repetition of the word ‘dark,’ which communicates the pessimistic outlook and an atmosphere of terror. The ‘dark metal’ likely refers to tankers and guns which oppress the people of the persona’s country.
Themes:
War
Conflict
Doom
Death and despair
War
he poem reflects the devastation caused by war, both physically and emotionally.
The “festival of guns” and “dark metal” emphasize the destructive presence of weapons and the military during British colonial rule.
The metaphorical “man of death” symbolizes the direct impact of war on individuals, nature, and the aspirations of the persona’s “love.”
