Prayer to Masks
Which two colours are mentioned in the opening description of the masks?
Black and red
What does the speaker ask people not to bring when he returns from exile?
Flowers
Which birds does the speaker suggest talking to in summer?
Swallows
In Poem of Return, which technique is used when the line “When I return from the land of exile and silence” appears twice?
Repetition
In Prayer to Masks, the speaker describes the masks as having “immobile eyes.” What does the word “immobile” mean?
Motionless
What do the masks symbolise in the poem?
African ancestors / heritage
What does the word “return” most directly suggest?
Homecoming
Which figure of speech involves speaking directly to someone or something?
Apostrophe
In Talk to the Peach Tree, the repeated use of the word “Let's” creates a sense of collective action and invitation. What element of poetry is created through the repeated use of similar sentence structures?
Rhythm
In Poem of Return, the phrase “a wingless stone in hand” creates an unexpected combination of an object and an impossible or unusual quality. Which literary device draws attention to this contradiction?
Paradox
What figure of speech is used in the description of Africa as “a pitiable princess”?
Metaphor
What literary concept applies when returning home represents more than a physical journey?
Symbolism
What does the speaker mean when he says that words have been misused and have “lost meaning”?
People no longer use language truthfully or meaningfully
In Poem of Return, the “thread of anger snaking from their eyes” creates a vivid mental picture by appealing to the reader’s senses. What poetic element is this?
Imagery
In Talk to the Peach Tree, the speaker describes the heat as “paralysing.” Which literary device is used to emphasise the intensity of this experience?
Hyperbole
What historical system threatened African cultural identity through foreign rule and influence?
Colonialism
What feeling might someone experience when returning home after a long absence and finding that things have changed?
Alienation / displacement
What does the suggestion to ask the rubbish heap about its stench reveal about the speaker’s approach to uncomfortable realities?
He wants people to confront unpleasant truths rather than ignore them
In Poem of Return, the contrast between the request for “flowers” and the suffering represented by “mothers mourning” highlights the difference between superficial gestures and painful realities. What literary technique is used to emphasise this contrast?
Juxtaposition
In Prayer to Masks, the speaker contrasts the world's “machines and cannons” with Africa's rhythm and dance. Which literary device places opposing ideas alongside each other to emphasise their differences?
Contrast/Antithesis
What literary and cultural movement promoted pride in Black African identity and heritage?
Négritude
What does the “thread of anger snaking from their eyes” symbolise?
Resistance
What is the term for using an apparently ordinary or indirect conversation to communicate a deeper meaning?
Subtext
In Prayer to Masks, the image of Africa as “the leaven that the white flour needs” draws on the process of fermentation to suggest that Africa can transform and revitalise the wider world. What type of symbolism is created by using a concrete process to represent a broader cultural and historical transformation?
Allegorical symbolism
In Talk to the Peach Tree, the speaker suggests talking to “the devil himself” because of the situation in the world. Which literary device uses humour, irony or exaggeration to criticise society?
Satire