This analysis of the poem 'Higher Education' cover
aspects such as poetic devices, tone and the message conveyed by the poem. An essential study aid to tackle ENG1501 (2023) Assignment 01.
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ENG1501. Analysis of the poem ‘Higher
Education’ by B.W. Vilakazi.
The analysis comprise of aspects such poetic devices, tone and message
conveyed by the poem. An essential study aid to tackle UNISA module
ENG1501 assignment 01 (2023).
Author: Malesela
For more information contact:
maleselamakwesa1@gmail.com
,Higher Education by: B.W. Vilakazi
1. When my thinking was but folly, 37. But now I think about the time
2. Then I dreamed of satisfaction 38. When age and weakness must defeat me;
3. If I read my books and studied 39. Now I search my bags and pockets,
4. Pondered learning, mused on wisdom 40. But I find there, only books;
5. Striving for some understanding 41. These, no matter where, pursue me:
6. Now, today, my mind is weary. 42. Let me then resolve their message.
7. I have spent so many years 43. I see the names of all nations,
8. Turning over leaves of books 44. I see ancestral shields are hidden
9. Whose authors’ skins were white; 45. While ancestral shields are hidden
10. And every night I sat alone 46. As, from their tombs, the spirits listen
11. Until the new day’s sun arose: 47. And tell me I should come and share
12. But now, today, my eyes are throbbing. 48. Their bowl, for I am not forgotten.
13. And poets who were black I called on, 49. So I absorb and add and store
14. Those who sang of kings’ ambitions, 50. Wisdom for Zulu’s children.
15. Those who praised our brimming bowls, 51. The day may come to see that treasure,
16. And their wisdom too, I though on, 52. The day may come to have discussions
17. Mixing it with white men’s teachings: 53. And learn from all my nightly writings,
18. Now my mind’s a battlefield. 54. Never written from ambition:
55. For you, ancestral spirits, urged me,
19. He who does not know these things 56. Inspiring me through hours of darkness!
20. And sleeps untroubled through the night,
21. Never reading till the dawn, 57. But then I shall be here no longer.
22. Not knowing Cicero or Caesar,
23. Shaka, Ngqika or Moshoeshoe:
24. He, today, is light of heart.
25. Those I grew with, those unlettered
26. When they meet me, they despise me,
27. Seeing me walk on naked feet
28. While they travel in their cars,
29. Leaving me to breathe their dust:
30. These today are chiefs and masters.
31. Should I try to change my ways
32. And pick up crumbs such men may drop-
33. These, my fellows who have prospered?
34. But I know that I am fettered,
35. Prisoned by my love of learning:
36. What I am and love, enslaves me.
1
, ANALYSIS OF THE POEM HIGHER EDUCATION
This analysis will help improve your understanding of the poem and give you the
confidence to respond to essay and examination questions with ease. In the first
place, Higher Education is an example of a modern poem for the reason that it uses
simple language and has no rigorous poetic features.
I should hope you have studied the unit on poetry in Tutorial Letter 501, for it is
essential as it provides us with background information on this genre. In the analysis
we will discuss poetic devices used in poem, tone and the speaker’s intention
(message conveyed by the poem). I was surprised to uncover that this poem has
relevance to modern times, particularly in South Africa, where due to high levels of
unemployed graduates people start to become sceptical towards the importance of
higher education. I also uncovered that in the poem the speaker highlight the issue
of decolonising higher education.
We will now begin with the analysis of the poem.
As a rule it is important to number the lines of a poem under discussion when they
are not numbered. This makes the discussion activity easier in cases where you
need to refer to a particular line from the poem during argument; and it also saves
you time.
First to examine is the poem’s title. A title can be a mirror into the poem because
often it informs the reader about the topic to be discussed. At first glance it is easy to
assume that the poem Higher Education is about of course, higher education, which
turns out to be the case. It is also wise to take some time to investigate the author of
the poem as this can provide clues to questions that may arise later. We do not know
the gender of the speaker in the poem. Therefore we will refer to this voice as a ‘he’,
rather for convenience than to imply the male gender.
Stanza 1opens with the statement: “when my thinking was but folly, I dreamed of
satisfaction” (lines 1-2). One thing to remember about poetry is that ordinary
language is used out of its ordinary use. This means that one need to inspect the
text thoroughly in an effort to uncover its hidden meaning. My interpretation of lines
1-2 is that the speaker implies that “when [his] knowledge was inadequate, [he]
dreamed of developing it”. Now the question is how did he plan on doing this? By
reading books and studying (line 3), meaning enrolling at a university, for instance.
Line 4’s “pondered learning, mused on wisdom” could be viewed in the light that
academic books are researched and organised afterwards, an act presumably
suggested by the word ‘pondered’. These books are ‘pondered’ with the aim to
ultimately impart the compiled wisdom to those who would become students in an
institution of high learning, with the intention of benefiting from such ‘wisdom, or
knowledge’, alluded in line 5 by the word “understanding”. The words ‘understanding
and ‘knowledge’ more or less convey a similar meaning. Thus, we can summarise
2
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