EXPLORING THE POEMS IN LINTON KWESI
JOHNSON’S “MI REVALUESHANARY FREN: SELECTED POEMS”
AUTHOR
Linton Kwesi Johnson (aka LKJ) was born in Jamaica, 24 August 1952. He is a UK-based dub
poet. In 2002 he became the second
living poet, and the only black poet, to be published in the Penguin
Modern Classics series.
Most of Johnson's poetry is political, dealing mainly with the experiences of
being an African-Caribbean in Britain. His performance poetry involves the
recitation of his own verse in Jamaican
Patois over dub-reggae. His
performances can be found on YouTube.
“FIVE NIGHTS OF BLEEDING”
Poem
is written in a hybrid Jamaican dialect; consisting of a mixture of Jamaican
and English, known as “Creole”.
It
offers a more expansive notion of British identity through the reconstruction
of the urban British landscape. LKJ deliberately takes the reader through
highly concentrated Afro-Caribbean areas, such as Brixton and Sheppard’s Bush
to draw attention to the strong Afro-Caribbean presence.
The
poem also holds violent images: “cold blades as sharp as the eyes of hate” and
repeated utterances of “madness…madness…war.” It could be argued that these are
violent and possessive images, reminiscent of the violent colonial practices
employed by empirical powers to take possession of nations.
“IT DREAD INNNA INGLAN”
Poem is also written in the
same style of “Five nights of Bleeding.” Apparently LKJ wrote it after Margret
Thatcher won the election, so could be seen as a response to Margaret
Thatcher’s ‘swamping’ speech. LKJ mockingly addresses “Maggi Tacha” and calls
on all British migrants, from “African/Asian/ West Indian/ an Black British”,
to “stan firm inna Inglan”, declaring “we are here to stay”. In this poem LKJ
offers a diverse representation of British identity, uniting the perceived
outsiders and resolving his racist opponents to the status of the nameless
‘other’.
“FORCES OF VICTRI”
LKJ was politically involved
in the carnival movement and wrote the poem, “Forces of Victri”, to celebrate
the continuation of the Noting Hill Carnival. The poem begins: “We’re di forces
af vicri/ An wi comin rite
through/ We’re di forces af victri/ Now was yu gonna do”. The poem has echoes
of a defiant protest chant. The poem also has an evident rhyme and rhythm
pattern, which makes the tone very challenging, with the Creole vernacular also
enhancing the challenging sentiments.
FUTHER READING
D’ Aguiar, Fred. Introduction in Mi Revalueshanary Fren: Selected poems, Linton Kwesi Johnson.
London: Penguin Classics, 2002.
Dawson, Ashley. Mongrel Nation: Diasporic Culture and the Making of
Postcolonial Britain. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 2007.
Hall, Stuart. “Calypso
Kings” Friday
28 June 2002. http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2002/jun/28/nottinghillcarnival2002.nottinghillcarnival
Proctor, James. Writing Black
Britain, 1948-98: An Interdisciplinary Anthology. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000.
No comments:
Post a Comment