JUST SIT, OPPRESSOR, JUST SIT
Isaac Mruma
Just cross your
legs
With the belly
covering them,
Oppressor.
Just yoga there,
Smoking imported
cigars,
A product of
their toil,
Oppressor.
Just sit belching
Yesterday’s feed,
Stoop there and
grin
At bones toiling
in
Suffocation.
Count oppressor,
Spell out in your
book of evils
Recording the
toll of the unlucky
You have robbed.
When they sell
their unga
To the lone fat
you
And you clasp it
tightly,
Hoarding
Their own
property;
When you eat
As they die just
rest.
The bullet of
reawakening
Will raise you
From your nap,
For it is not in
vain
That they will
struggle.
The blows they
register
Killing the
greedy,
Butchering,
Mauling the
unbelieving
The eaters,
You
Will present a
case
For history to
decide.
There wakes enlightenment
To prod the
backward
To struggle,
And you have to
die
For the men you
sucked
To live in
harmony.
Power flows in
the veins
Of the gallant,
Desiring
alleviation.
For it is never
in vain,
Oppressor,
The struggle to
bury you
Continues.
INTRODUCTION
“Just sit, oppressor, just sit” is an
ironical and satirical title that tells the oppressor to keep on sitting while
waiting for his doom (death). The poem
shows how the oppressor has become rich by exploiting and robbing the poor
people whom he calls the unlucky. However, as they start gaining awareness they
plan to fight the oppressor, kill him and bury him. So the persona says “just
sit, oppressor” to awaken him that if he is so powerful, let him sit and wait
for his own doom because the oppressed class is now determined to kill him. In
other words “Just Sit Oppressor Just
Sit” implies “rise up and run to
rescue you life”
THEMATIC ANALYSIS
OPPRESSION AND EXPLOITATION
The title of the poem itself paints the picture of
oppression. There is an oppressor who represents the high class members who are
getting rich by robbing the wealth of poor people. The poet shows that the
oppressor sits idly smoking cigar while the poor people work toiling in
suffocation. He says; Count oppressor,
Spell
out in your book of evils
Recording
the toll of the unlucky
You
have robbed.
SACRIFICE AND REVENGE
The poet shows that those who are exploited, oppressed and robbed are
ready to fight and revenge against the oppressor. They are so determined to use
the bullet of reawakening (self awareness) to win their cause.
When you eat
As they die just rest.
The bullet of
reawakening
Will raise you
In the penultimate stanza he shows that these people are ready for
revenge as he says:
And you have to die
For the men you sucked
To live in harmony.
AWARENESS
Awareness is an important tool to bring about the liberation of the
oppressed. If the oppressed people are not aware of the oppression and the ways
to fight against oppression then there is no hope for their future. These
people seem to be aware of the oppression; they have identified the enemy (the
oppressor) and are ready to fight against him. He says;
There wakes enlightenment
To prod the backward
To struggle,
And you have to die
For the men you sucked
To live in harmony.
They know that for them to live in harmony they must first kill the
oppressor.
DETERMINATION AND COURAGE (GALLANTRY)
Although the oppressor seems to be a person from high class, the
oppressed have decided to sacrifice themselves to fight him nevertheless.
Because of the raising awareness among the oppressed they have power flowing in
their veins and they are ready for change. He says;
Power flows in the veins
Of the gallant,
Desiring alleviation.
For it is never in vain,
Oppressor,
The struggle to bury you
Continues.
The poet however shows that the kind of struggle they use is a violent
one. To fight against the oppressive high class sometimes violence is the only
way. The poet says
The blows they register
Killing the greedy,
Butchering,
Mauling the unbelieving
The eaters,
CLASSES.
The poem contains two major classes. On one side there is the high class
as represented by the oppressor. This is the class that exploits the efforts of
the majority who toil but the products of their toil goes to benefit the
oppressor. The second class is lower class – that of the poor ones who are
oppressed and exploited. They are the ones who are involved in production but
the fruits of their labour are exploited by the high class. He says;
Count oppressor,
Spell out in your book
of evils
Recording the toll of
the unlucky
You have robbed.
GUIDING QUESTIONS
a. What
is the poem about?
The poem is about the oppressor who has become rich by
exploiting and robbing the poor people. However, as they start gaining
awareness they plan to fight the oppressor, kill him and bury him.
b. Explain
the tone and mood of the poet.
The
tone is serious, satirical and angry because of oppression and exploitation
done by the oppressor. It creates a hatred, bitter, and angry mood towards the
high class. That’s why the oppressed people are ready to fight.
c. Who
is the persona in this poem? How do you know?
The persona is a person from lower class (the
oppressed) ones who is aware of oppression and exploitation by the high class. This is evident when he says Count
oppressor,/Spell out in your book of evils/ Recording the toll of the unlucky
/You have robbed.
d. Comment
on the structure of the poem.
The
poem is a dramatic monologue in
which the persona addresses the oppressor but the oppressor does not respond. There
are 10 stanzas of unequal number of verses and uneven length of verses.
e. What
type of the poem is this?
It
is a modern/freeverse
poem. It does not follow all the rules of writing poems like regular
rhyming scheme, there is variation in the length and number of lines in each
stanza. It is specifically a Lyric poem as it expresses strong
feelings of the persona
f. Comment
on the language use in the poem.
The
language used is simple and easy to understand. It has made good choice of
words that drive the message home easily. Such as oppressor, robbed,
suffocation, they paint a picture of injustice but words like bullets, killing,
butchering, mauling, gallant, struggle, paint a picture of sacrifice and
struggle for change.
v
Figures of speech.
Ø
Exaggeration
Just cross your legs with the belly covering them.
Ø
Repetition
The word “oppressor” is
repeated 4 times throughout the poem.
Ø
Barbarism.
When they sell their unga
“unga” a Swahili word which means flour.
Ø
Personification
Bones toiling in suffocation (bones cannot toil)
For history to decide. (History cannot decide)
Ø
Parallelism
Killing the greedy,
Butchering,
Mauling the unbelieving
Ø
Alliteration
That they will struggle.
g. What
is the message in the poem?
Ø
Sacrifice
is very important to bring about changes.
Ø
Awareness
is an important tool to liberate the oppressed.
Ø
The
oppressors will one day come to an end so they should prepare for their doom.
Ø
Exploitation
of the poor by rich class should be discouraged.
Ø
We
should be courageous (gallant) enough if we want to win any struggle.
h. Discuss
the relevance of the poem to the society.
The
poem is relevant to our society in a number of ways;
Ø
There
is exploitation of the poor by the rich class
Ø
There
is oppression of the lower class by the high class especially the rulers.
Ø
There
are people in the society who are ready to sacrifice for the betterment of the
majority.
Ø
In
our society there are classes of the poor people and the rich ones.
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