CHAPTER 2
David Diop and Africa
David Diop is a Negritude poet who, perhaps more than any other African artist, stands for the growth and development of African socio-cultural and political values. Oladele Taiwo describes him as follows: “more than any African poet of his time, he was committed to the cause of Africa and it is for this reason that he is sometimes referred to as a poet of the African revolution.”1
The Negritude philosophy and ideology to which David Diop is a fanatic disciple, is described by Leopold Sedar Senghor, its principal advocate, “as the awareness, defence, and development of African cultural values.”2 And the Negritude poems where Diop profoundly celebrates the virtues and values of Africa include “Africa,” “Listen, Comrades,” “Your Presence,” and “To a Black Dancer.” Poems in which he acidly attacks those who denigrate what Africa stands for are “The Vultures,” “The Renegade,” and “Nigger Tramp.”
I
The lyric, “Africa,” is one of Diop’s most celebrated and anthologized poems.
Africa my Africa
Africa of proud warriors in ancestral savannahs
Africa of whom my grandmother sings
On the banks of the distant river
I have never known you
But your blood flows in my veins
Your beautiful black blood that irrigates the fields
The blood of your sweat
The sweat of your work
The work of your slavery
The slavery of your children
Africa tell me Africa
Is this you this back that is bent
This back that breaks under the weight of humiliation
This back trembling with red scars
And saying yes to the whip under the midday sun
But a grave voice answers me
Impetuous son that tree young and strong
That tree there
In splendid loneliness amidst white and faded flowers
That is Africa your Africa
That grows again patiently obstinately
And its fruit gradually acquire
The bitter taste of liberty.3
There is anger in this poem and there is sorrow also in the poem. The tone of bitterness, which David Diop expresses in the poem, suggests the fact that nothing can assuage his anger and pain except perhaps through a complete restoration or reparation for all the wrongs committed against Africa.
The poem also celebrates Africa and black beauty, which is one of the tenets of the Negritude philosophy. Before Negritude, the concept of blackness was viewed negatively as an evil phenomenon which must be dreaded, derided, and repudiated. In this poem, Diop traces the plight and the struggles of the black man right from antediluvian times to the present day, and thus decides to accord it the adoration and honor which it deserves (“Africa my Africa/Africa of proud warriors in the ancestral savannahs,/Africa where my grandmother sings,” lines 1-3).
In this poem Diop re-discovers Africa, which symbolically becomes his territory, his home, his beloved which he celebrates with glory and adoration. He is equally disappointed that the object of his love is a victim of abysmal violation and mistreatment (“is this you this back that is bent/this back that breaks under the weight of humiliation/this back trembling with red scars” (MPA, p. 63, lines 13-14).
The poem recalls some of Claude McKay’s lyrics (e.g., “If We Must Die” and “The Negroes Tragedy”) where the pain and suffering of the African Americans are painfully and vividly documented. However, while McKay employs negative epithets to characterize the black man’s adversary (e.g., “the mad and hungry dogs,” “the monsters we defy”), David Diop simply narrates the African experience while leaving the reader to evaluate the situation presented and then pass his own judgment.
For David Diop, apparently, narrating the African experience without the employment of sordid invectives is a far more effective strategy of articulating the African historical experience. Furthermore, Diop believes that the greatness of Africa, which the European colonialists destroyed, can be restored through the dignity of hard labor. With the attainment of freedom through political independence, Africa will grow strong again and reclaim her lost glory and respectability in the comity of nations.
Diop’s love for Africa is profound and sincere, and he employs repetition, irony, and sarcasm to drive home his narrative. His employment of the word, “Africa,” in the poem’s title, no less than the repetitive refrain inherent in the poem’s first line “Africa my Africa,” effectively and conclusively suggests his deep affection for his continent. The irony suggested by the fact that Africa, which was once the cradle ancient civilization, is now turned into a place of poverty and disrepute, strengthens the poet’s message and the audience’s sympathy for his argument.
In “Listen Comrades,” Diop not only demonstrates his love for the African continent, but also his knowledge of its lores and traditions. The poet begins with a recollection of the names of several people in the local community who, for decades, suffered from brutalities and injustice since the black man’s unfortunate but inevitable encounter with Western culture. They include: Mamba “with his white hairs/Who ten times poured forth for us milk and light,” as well as “the seven of Martinsville
The poem’s narrative structure is interesting for a variety of reasons: the lyric’s title, “Listen Comrades,” is a typical African manner of elicing support and co-operation, especially when one seeks to explain a bitter experience that touches the life of the entire village community. In adopting this narrative technique, Diop not only aims to carry his audience along with him, he also seeks to stir up the emotional feelings of his local tribesmen.
In several parts of the poem, Diop reiterates several events that affect him and his community: e.g., the painful experience of slavery, where the African was captured as a slave and transported from Africa was captured as a slave and transported from Africa to America; the atrocities of torture, exile and humiliation which the slaves suffered in the hands of the Western colonial invaders (“The cry of a hundred people smashing their cells/And my blood long held in exile,” MPA, p. 61, lines 20 & 21); and the African’s philosophic way of viewing human suffering and the vicissitudes of life with equanimity and optimism (“It is the sign of the dawn/The sign of brotherhood which comes to nourish the dreams of men,” MPA, p. 62, lines 26-27).
Finally, Diop employs images and epithets that will endear him to his people:
Listed comrades of the struggling centuries
To the keen clamour of the Negro from Africa to the
Americas
It is the sign of the dawn
The sign of brotherhood which comes to nourish the dreams of men
(MPA, p. 62).
The narrative strategy employed above, whereby the poet recalls the people’s common experience, is a typical device -- common in African folklore -- of eliciting support, cooperation, and goodwill from the tribesmen, especially if they are in doubt or are unable to remember their historical background, or the virtues that link them together as a people.
Another poem where Diop demonstrates his love for Africa and celebrates it, is “Your Presence:”
In your presence I rediscovered my name
My name that was hidden under the pain of separation
I rediscovered the eyes no longer veiled with fever
And your laughter like a flame piercing the shadows
Has revealed Africa to me beyond the snows of yesterday
Ten years my love
With days of illusions and shattered ideas
And sleep made restless with alcohol
The suffering that burdens today with the taste of tomorrow.
And necklaces of laughter hung around our days
Days sparkling with ever new joys
(MPA, p. 62).
In this poem, which K.E. Senanu and T. Vincent4 compare to U. Tam’si’s “Viaticum” (for its employment of the imagery of “laughter”), Diop articulates his deep connectedness to his ancestral African roots. Having been away from the continent for a decade (“Ten years my love,” line 6), the home-coming and re-union which he establishes with his relation can only bring to him unlimited joy and satisfaction
One important element of this poem is its effective employment of contrast, both as a rhetorical and a poetic device. Here, the continents of Europe and Africa are compared and contrasted. For Diop, Africa symbolizes beds of roses, (“laughter like a flame of piercing the shadows/…And necklaces of laughter hung around our days/Days sparkling with ever new joys,” lines 4, 12-13).
In contrast to the above, the European continent, where Diop lived as an exile for ten years, represents a bee-hive of “pain,” “illusions and abandoned ideas,” the “snows of yesterday” and “eyes… veiled with fever.” Perhaps nothing best describes the European socio-cultural environment than the expression, the “suffering that burdens today with the taste of tomorrow” (MPA, p. 62, line 9).
II
Because of his affection for Africa, Diop is intolerant of anyone who disparages it and its values. Consequently, in such pieces as “The Vultures,” “The Renegade” and “To a Black Dancer,” he does not only profess his love for his continent, he also has harsh words for those who denounce Africa and its political and socio-cultural values.
In “The Vultures,” for example, David Diop effectively employs the image of a predatory bird to characterize all that is British and nefarious in Western colonialism, and the colonizer’s contempt and disdain for the native population. Furthermore, as a bird of prey, the vulture is merciless in its treatment of its victims.
The lyric’s argument is organized in three parts: pre-colonial, colonial, and the post-colonial period. During the pre-colonial era, Africa was the epitome of prosperity, strength and progress. The metaphor, “we whose hands fertilize the womb of the earth/in spite of your songs of pride” (MPA, p. 64, line 14-15) highlights the glorious state of Africa during its heydays. Because Africa was living in prosperity and abundance, it was able to offer support and relief to others.
However, during the colonial period, the fame and fortunes of Africa were completely wiped out as the Western colonizers embarked on what the poet characterizes as “When civilization kicked us in the face/When holy water slapped our cringing brows” (lines 2-3). The image, “holy water,” symbolizes Christianity which, through its baptism, converted the indigenous African population -- sometimes against their will -- from paganism to Christianity. The poet’s employment of the words “slapped” and “cringing” suggests the level of humiliation and degradation to which the Africans were subjected.
The colonial period also witnessed intense pillage and despoliation of cherished cultural values. Several important artifacts, the “mines,” and other legacies were either looted or destroyed. The images, “bloodstained monuments, the “metallic hell of the roads,” the “howling on the plantations” the “bitter memories of exhorted kisses,” “the promises broken at the point of a gun,” and “foreigners who did not seem human,” collectively symbolize the nature of the Western colonial period.
The third phase, that is, the postcolonial era, Diop asserts, will culminate in unlimited prosperity (“Hope was preserved in us as in a fortress/And from the mines of Swaziland
What makes “The Vultures” remarkable as a poem is not only the fact that Diop effectively employs bestiary as a satiric device, but also his deft use of repetition (e.g., “In spite of your songs of pride/in spite of the desolate villages of torn Africa,” lines 18-19) which endows his verse with a resonance and lyricism not common in African poetics. Furthermore, by his use of a historical narrative structure (symbolized by “in those days when civilization kicked us in the face,” line 2), Diop displays his ability to link the events of the past to those of the present. Equally remarkable is his use of contrast where, for example, the glorious African past is discussed against a backdrop of the sordid colonial era. In all of the above, Diop demonstrates his vast poetic skills and architectonics.
Another poem where Diop ridicules those who have contempt for Africa and its values, is “The Renegade:”
My brother you flash your teeth in response to every hypocrisy
My brother with gold-rimmed glasses
You give your master a blue-eyed faithful look
My poor brother in immaculate evening dress
Screaming and whispering, and pleading in the parlours of condescension
We pity you
Your country’s burning sun is nothing but a shadow
On your serene “civilized” brow
And the thought of your grandmother’s hut
Brings blushes to your face that is bleached
By years of humiliation and bad conscience
And while you trample on the bitter red soil of Africa
Let these words of anguish keep time with your
restless step -
Oh I am lonely so lonely here.
(MPA, p. 63)
The above lines typify the kind of verse noteworthy about Diop which Gerald Moore and Ulli Beir commend as follows:
…there is no room for gentle nostalgia or forgiveness. His poems move inexorably towards a triumphant affirmation. He does not hope for better things, he commands them by the power of the word…5
Against the above background, it must be understood that “The Renegade” has three basic movements: the first part discusses the attitude of those who imitate Western values against the African culture, the second part focuses on their attitude towards the Western culture; while the third part deals with the consequences that await them for betraying their ancestral cultural values.
Because of their pride, ignorance and hypocrisy, those who denigrate their own culture in preference for the foreign cultural values usually wear “gold-rimmed glasses” with their skin “bleached.” Furthermore, their behaviour towards their master -- whom they imitate -- is characterized by subservience and sheepish loyalty (“You give your master a blue-eyed faithful look,” line 3), wickedness (“Your country’s burning sun is nothing, but a shadow,” line 7) and insensitivity (“years of humiliation and bad conscience,” line 11).
The reason why they prefer the European culture to the indigenous African culture is because they want to be viewed as sophisticated or “civilized.” It is also probably due to the fact that they want to embrace change or newness, and change, to be sure, is usually more exotic and exciting than the old ways. Furthermore, probably because they want favour or a reward -- such as a lucrative employment -- they are ready to imitate or do their “master’s” bidding (“Screaming and whispering in the parlours of condescension,” line 5).
The consequences for those who forsake or denigrate the indigenous African culture are better imagined than stated. For example, because these people engage in “bleaching” their skin, they are more likely to contract incurable diseases like cancer. The poet specifically states in the last line of the lyric that they will meet with loneliness. The fact that he repeats the word “lonely” suggests the fact that, for this category of people, the end will not be pretty.
Because of the seriousness of his subject matter, Diop employs the sonnet sequence to articulate his message, apparently because he believes that no other poetic device can effectively convey with clarity and precision the issues he seeks to address. But it is the modern sonnet form, which because it has no prosodic constraint like the Petrarchan and the Shakespearean sonnet forms, enables the poet to discuss his subject matter freely and unobtrusively.
In “To a Black Dancer,” a poem in which Diop piles up images upon images the poet employs the metaphor of the black woman dancer both to highlight the beauty and strength of Africa, as well as to dismiss the wickedness and false propaganda of Africa’s enemies and detractors. For the poet, the black woman dancer symbolizes grace, integrity, and exquisite charm. The reference to the “naked joy of your smile,” the “offering of your breasts and secret powers,” and the “dance by the golden tales of marriage nights” highlights the beauty of the black woman dancer, and, by implication, the Africa which she symbolizes.
The “rumours” to which Diop alludes in the first line of the poem may signify anything including the greatness of Africa before the colonial era, to the false propaganda peddled against it by some early European adventurers; for example, that Africa was not only a “dark” continent -- with no history, no culture -- but that it was inhabited by wild animals, cannibers, and barbarians.
Still developing the myth of black womanhood and the greatness of Africa, Diop concludes the poem by asserting that the black woman dancer does not only epitomize the ancient African traditions, but also the pillar, fortress, and defender of every good thing that Africa represents:
…
You are the face of the initiate
Sacrificing his childhood before the tree god
You are the idea of all and the voice of the Ancient
Gravely rocketed against our fears
You are the Word which explodes
In showers of light upon the shores of oblivion.
(MPA, p. 65).
On interest in the quoted passage above is the employment of the word “fears,” which recalls several of the obnoxious and nuseating policies of the European colonialists, who unleashed fear and terror on the indigenous African population, including the wanton destruction of kingdoms and empires, the raping of women, and the looting of artifacts and other valuable treasures. Symbolically, for Diop, the charm and grace which the “black dancer” exudes will mitigate or redeem Africa and her people from all the years of denigration and humiliation suffered since the period of the European colonialism.
III
We can conclude this chapter by saying that David Diop’s verse operates at several levels of meaning: On the one hand, he asserts and defends vigorously the beauty, strength, and integrity of Africa and its cultural values. His respect and love for Africa is without question.
On the other hand, he castigates anyone who denigrates Africa and what it stands for. His mode of attack includes the use of repetition, satire, and ridicule. Sometimes when he is angry, he employs humor to calm an otherwise provocative and vexatious situation, such as his repetitive employment of the epithet, “My brother,” in the poem “The Renegade,” even though it is apparent to the close reader of the poem that the addressee may have committed an offence for which he may be very culpable. David Diop is a versatile poet who employs his vast skills and architectonics to articulate his themes vividly, vigorously, and passionately.
Notes
1. Oladele Taiwo, An Introduction to West African Literature (London: Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd., 1967), p. 90
2. Leopold Sedar Senghor, “The Struggle for Negritude,” in Senghor: Prose and Poetry, ed. Reed and Wake (London: Oxford University Press, 1965), p. 97
3. David Diop, “Africa,” in Modern Poetry from Africa, eds. Gerald Moore and Ulli Beier (London and New York: Penguin Books, 1978), pp. 63-64. All quotations from David Diop’s poetry will come from this anthology. Subsequent citations from the volume will be abbreviated parenthetically as MPA, followed by the page number(s).
4. K.E. Senanu and T. Vincent, A Selection of African Poetry, p. 73.
5. Gerald Moore and Ulli Beier, Modern Poetry from Africa, p. 20.
Works Cited
Diop, David. “Africa,” Modern Poetry from Africa , ed. Gerald Moore and Ulli Beier. London and New York
Moore, Gerald and Ulli Beier. Modern Poetry from Africa . London and New York
Senanu, K.E. and T. Vincent A Selection of African Poetry. Burnt Mill, Harlow: Longman Group, 1976.
Senghor, Leopold Sedar: ”The Struggle for Negritude,” Senghor: Prose and Poetry, ed. Reed and Wake. London : Oxford University
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