The Awakening Age by Ben Okri | NEB English Class 12 Summary and Critical Analysis

The Awakening Age by Ben Okri 

About Ben Okri

Ben Okri, a Nigerian poet who won the Man Booker Prize, is regarded as one of the postmodern age's most significant and well-liked African writers. His poetry, which he wrote in the forms of fiction, essays, and poetry, has always had a message of humanity and an all-encompassing fraternity. When Okri, then 21 years old, released his first book Flowers and Shadows in 1980, it marked the beginning of his career as a writer. He was the poetry editor for West Africa magazine from 1983 to 1986. From 1983 to 1985, he regularly contributed to the BBC World Service and continued to publish. It is very challenging to classify Okri's work. Even though it has been broadly labeled as post-modern, several academics have argued that this classification is called into question by the apparent realism with which he depicts the spirit world. Oral history had an impact on Okri as well. Many of his works, including The Awakening Age, are said to be influenced by his firsthand observations of Nigeria's civil war. In this poem, Okri depicts the suffering of the African people and expresses his desire for a unified world where peaceful coexistence is valued and practiced.

Poem genre and Form

The poem comprises two lines and seven stanzas which qualify as a sonnet. A fourteen-line poem with a set rhyme pattern is called a sonnet. It is a couplet and a monorhyme, a poem in which every line follows the same rhyme pattern: It has two-line stanzas that rhyme with "AA," which frequently takes the form "AA BB CC and DD." It gives the text pace and a lovely melodic tone.

Literary Devices: a) A simile, like a mountain rope, is used in the 3rd stanza, 2nd line.

                                b) Alliteration, repetition of sound 'a' in “Awakening Age”, is in the 2nd Stanza, 2nd line

Theme

The name "Age of Awakening" refers to the period between the publication of New Youth magazine in 1915 and the establishment of the Communist Party of China in 1921, bringing the mission into balance and laying the groundwork for ideas. China was dealing with internal and external issues, as well as turbulence and decline, as well as mental shifts. "Awakening is the only way to break free from the unchanging out of the last two thousand five hundred years." The May Fourth Movement and the New Culture Movement both experienced instability, and many intellectuals and young revolutionaries painstakingly explored this path to awakening. The historical era of intellectual enlightenment represents a new beginning for the Chinese people on their quest for redemption and survival. This time in history is crucial for the Chinese revolution and for the nation's renewal since it allows for the development of the initial desire, the taming of the mission, and the establishment of ideals.

Poem

O ye who travel the meridian line,

May the vision of a new world within you shine.

May eyes that have lived with poverty's rage,

See-through to the glory of the awakening age.

For we are all richly linked in hope,

Woven in history, like a mountain rope.

Together we can ascend to a new height,

Guided by our heart's clearest light.

 

When perceptions are changed there's much to gain,

A flowering of truth instead of pain.

There's more to a people than their poverty;

There's their work, wisdom, and creativity.

Along the line may our lives rhyme,

To make a loving harvest of space and time.

Summing up the Poem, The Awakening Age

In "The Awakening Age," Ben Okri depicts the tribulations of the African people. He also urges peace, solidarity, and unity among all peoples, regardless of where they are from. To bring about the awakening era of enlightenment, hope, wisdom, and togetherness, he seeks to awaken the world and its people from darkness, poverty, and misery. This poem tells the tale of how vulnerable groups in Nigeria have endured a long journey of hunger, poverty, unemployment, and conflicts involving ethnic, religious, political, terroristic, and other conflicts. The poet describes the trip of those who walk down the meridian line and have a glimpse of a new planet at the opening of the poem. These tourists may be moved to awaken the poor people to a world of freedom, equality, and prosperity after witnessing their pains and hardships.

The poet continues by reminding each reader of the interwoven story of humanity, in which individuals can overcome obstacles by using a rope of hope to reach new heights. He also serves as a reminder of the significance of race and civilization in bringing us to the Age of Enlightenment, which calls for a strong sense of cooperation and cohesion among individuals of many ethnicities. The poem narrates the tale of individuals who are moved by unseen forces and who are willing to alter their viewpoint to demonstrate that they are stronger than their difficulties and that they are prepared to soar to new heights on their own. Only when people's customary perceptions are altered or replaced is it feasible for the truth to blossom. As a result, the awakening age asks that we overcome poverty through perseverance, knowledge, creativity, and human togetherness and build an egalitarian society where we can flourish in our feeling of global fraternity.

Critical Analysis

Ben Okri, a Nigerian poet and novelist, portrays the sufferings, challenges, and hardships of the African Negros in his poem "The awakening age" and makes an appeal for world peace, prosperity, liberation, and harmony. Despite the poem's 2001 publication, the issues are still pertinent today. In the poem, the poet seeks to reawaken all of humanity from the age of ignorance and poverty to the age of awakened knowledge. Ben Okri, a Nigerian poet and novelist, portrays the sufferings, challenges, and hardships of the African Negros in his poem "The awakening age" and appeals for world peace, prosperity, liberation, and harmony. The poet wants to rouse the entire globe and its inhabitants from the world of darkness and poverty to the awakening age of enlightenment, yet the poem was published in 2001, and its topics are still pertinent today.

The persona addresses the newly arrived citizens of Nigeria who have suffered greatly as a result of the brutal conflict caused by moral and religious considerations, urging them to share a common vision of a modern, successful nation and to move from poverty to shared prosperity. Similarly, he discusses expanding one's sense of nationalism as well as altering one's limited view of others to create greater chances. Here, the poet has skillfully used the Meridian line to represent how Nigerians went from suffering adversities and division during the civil war to a nation of fraternity and harmony. It can be observed that poetry, no matter the age it was written, is still applicable now. People need to adopt a more open-minded mindset and lifestyle instead of their conventional ways of thinking. In this day and age, people are nevertheless familiar with the drawbacks, challenges, and sufferings of poverty. the incidents involving persons who were narrow-minded and injured many people's minds and souls People must realize that a person is so much more than their poverty. People are wise, talented, and diligent. Even in this day and age, there would be so much more peace and harmony in the world if individuals could let go of their limited viewpoints. We are capable of achieving heights that surpass the sky. In this exquisitely crafted poem, the poet hopes to see peace and harmony triumph, leaving all injustices behind. This poetry is just as evocative and relevant today as it was then.