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1 S 11

THE

POETRY OF N.S. PULENG

BY

MAISAYA H. TSHAUKE
B.A. (UNISA), B.A. HONS (U.P), J.S.T.C. II

SUBMITTED IN PART-FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS

FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN THE SUBJECT
AFRICAN LANGUAGES AT VISTA UNIVERSITY

SUPERVISOR: PROF. R.S. CHAPHOLE

 i

MVIST
896.3977112 PULE TSHA

LolL -04- 1 6
Class

Access

DECLARATION

I declare that the dissertation for the degree of Master of

Arts at VISTA University hereby submitted by me, has not been
previously submitted by me for a degree at this or at another
University, and that all material contained herein is
ac knowledged.

N+tkltt.u t~
... .. .. . .........
~ . .... .
SIGNATURE
 ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to express my gratitude to Professor R.S. Chaphole,

Head of the Department of African Languages at Vista
University for his diligent guidance, valuable suggestions
and encouragement in my dissertation.

Thanks to Dr. D. L. Mosoma, and Mrs P.M. Papo, the Principal

of Matseke P. School who gave up much of their time reading
my manuscript and sharing their views with me, not forgetting
all my friends for their loving and caring support.

Many thanks to my parents, Shadrack Mahobala and Francina

Mmangoako Rapetsoa; my mother-in-law, Peggy Hlamalani
Tshauke; my husband, John Louis and my daughter, Rirhandzu
Yvette for the encouragement they offered in my work.
 ;;;

THE POETRY OF N.S. PULENG

CHAPTER 1 PAGE

1. INTRODUCTION 1

1.1. MOTIVATION 1-3

1. 2 SCOPE 3-4
1.3 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES 4-7

CHAPTER 2
2. INFLUENCE 8-11

2.1 THE ROLE OF INFLUENCE IN PULENG ' S

POETRY 11-12
2.2 TRADITIONAL INFLUENCES 13-19

2.2.1 The Basic Structure of the proverb is

retained
2.2.2 The Structure of the Proverb is
altered 22-23
 iv
2.3 EXOTIC INFLUENCES Z3-24
2. 3.1 Bibl i ca l Infl uences 24-31
2.3. 2 Hymna l Refra in s ~-34

2.4 POLITICAL INFLUENCES 34-37

CHAPTER 3
3. THEMES 13-39
3.1 CULTURE 39-47
3. 2 DEATH 47-49
3. 3 INSPIRATION :fr-52
3.4 NATURE 53~

CHAPTER 4
4. IMAGERY 55-58
4. 1 METAPHOR 59-£3
4. 2 SIMILE 63-67
4.3 PERSONIFICATION 61-71
4.4 SYMBOLISM 71-74

CHAPTER 5
5. FORM OF POETRY 75

5.1 PARALLELISM 75-77

 v
5.2 LINKING 77-81

5.3 REFRAINS 82

5.4 RHYME 83-85

5.5 RHYTHM ffi-ffi

CHAPTER 6

CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
 1

1. INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this study is to analyze the poetry of Puleng.
There is no work done on Puleng to date which reveals his
thoughts, ideas, memories and creativity. This study wi 11
en 1i ghten interested readers es pee i a 11 y budding poets and
students of literature .

1.1 MOTIVATION
I have chosen to study Puleng ' s Poetry because it has a lot
to offer. To my knowledge this work has not been done
before. When completed, the study will definitely contribute
to knowledge .

Lerato ke peu,
Le bjetswe pelong tsa diphedi,
Lona ga le na mmala
(Ditlalemeso: 6)
Love is the seed,
It is planted in the heart of the living creatures
It does not have colour,

The words used in the expression of love are full of life.

It is important that human beings should grow in love since
l ove is the seed of all creation.
 2
In the fo 11 owing poem, the words used, in re 1at ion to the
life situation today, show that there i s much suffering:

Molotsana ga a na sa gagwe lefaseng,

0 aparetswe ke dikwero le maroga.
(Ditlalemeso: 20)
Little witch has nothing on earth,
Surrounded by sarcasm and blasphemy

Literature takes place within a cultural setting and no

meaningful criticism is possible without the existence of a
community of values shared by the writer, Puleng's poetry is
no exception.

Puleng writes about varying themes. In Seipone sa Madimabe:

i) 'Moratiwa ' p25 is about love

ii) 'Matete a lefase' p32 is about problems on earth
iii) ' Dinaledi' p34 i s about stars
iv) ' Lehu' p35 is about death

There are still more poems with various themes.

According to Marjorie Boulton, analysing poetry makes it

richer and more fascinating. It is our aim to enrich
Puleng's poetry through his analysis. Puleng is a modern
poet whose poetry places emphasis on poetic communication.
 3
1. 2 SCOPE

The scope of the study concerns t he Poetry of Puleng relevant

to 1i fe situati ons today. The work will be based on the
fo ll owing texts:

1. Di tlalemeso (1980)
2. Seipone sa Madimabe (1981)
3. Kgaa kgati tsa khwit i ya noka yeso (1983)
4. Sefah l ego sa pelo ya ka (1992)

Chapter two deals with influence. As a social being Puleng

has been influenced by a number of factors which stem from
the environment that has produced him.

Themes dea l t with in chapter three are concerned with

culture, death, inspiration and nature.

In chapter four, metaphor personification, simile and

symbo 1ism are discussed. Imagery used in Pu 1eng's poetry
be 1ongs to many diverse fie 1ds of experience. Figures of
speech are universal in their basic underlying concepts. The
poet avoids the ordinary speech of reportage through figures
of speech.
 4

The form of poetry is dealt with in chapter five. According

to Boulton (1982); Form implies some kind of definiteness
or coherence, shape of some kind. She regards rhythm as
meaning every possible aspect of metre, as the symmetrical,
repetitive patterns of stresses.

Chapter six is a general conclusion.

1.3 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

Nkomo Samuel Puleng was born on the lOth of January 1958 in
Randfontei n at a 1ocat ion ca 11 ed Bongweni, the Robinson
Central Location. Puleng is the son of the late Reverend
Paul William Bismark, a Christian of Dutch Reformed Church
in Africa. His mother, Sarah Peggy, is still a member of the
Dutch Reformed Church.

Puleng started school at Lehlasedi Primary School in

Zebediela from 1964 to 1969. From 1970 to 1972, he continued
with his schooling at Kgobokanang Senior Primary at Seshego.
From 1973 to 1977 he was at Hwiti High School. It was the
years he started working on poetry, compiling poems.

He received his training as a teacher at Mokopane College of

Education in 1980 and 1981. From 1982 to 1988 he taught at
 5
Sh i koane Primary School meanwhile working on poetry, single
dramas and serials. In 1984 he received the first award in
the best poetry Seipone sa Madimabe and also an Astera in the
best single drama of Radio Leboa, Mantsu a ke a bomang?

He then decided to further his education at the University

of the North where he obtained his B.A. Education and Higher
Education Diploma in 1993. Presently he is teaching at Mack
Semeka Senior Secondary.

Puleng's poetry is closer to reality and to an experience

which one feels himself as part of it and thus engage his
responses in a way that is both direct and immediately real.
Puleng enjoys reading the Bible due to family influence as
his grandfather was a prominent Lutheran Church elder.

Puleng married Themba Julia Jacqueline and they are blessed

with four children.

Books written by Puleng are:

i) Ditlalemeso (Poetry)
ii) Seipone sa Madimabe (Poetry)
iii) Kgaa kgati tsa khwiti ya noka yeso (Poetry)
iv) Malopo a Boreti (Poetry)
 6
v) Sefahlego sa pelo ya ka (Poetry)
vi) Thellenyane Batlabolela (Drama)

Single dramas presented by Pu l eng are:

i) Mantsu a ke a bomang?
ii) I nama, inama se go tshele
i i i ) Ke nna "A" 1e "0"
i v) Le badimo ba tla bolela
v) Go thaila mathaithai mo
vi) Le diphiri di tla utologa
vii) Roko ye ntsho

Whose voices are these

Bend down, bend down that it can pass
I am "A" and "0"
Even the gods will spea k
What is drawn here is tricks
Even secrets will be revealed
The black dress

The mini series complied by Puleng is:

Mphe Sebakanyana
Give me a chance

Puleng also wrote serials for radio usage and they were
broadcasted by Radio Leboa as:
 7
i) Seboko se tsene nyobeng
ii) Bantlhoi ba ka ka banthati

A worm in a sugarcane
My enemies equal my friends

Puleng likes singing and has compiled various songs. In

1994, he registered for BA (Hons) African Languages at the
University of Pretoria

Poetry has expressed and made manageable the general problems

of existence that are beyond the reach of scientific terms
and precise logical analysis.
 8

2. INFLUENCE
Influences evident throughout Pul eng ' s work wi 11 be discussed
in this chapter.

Influence may be defined as the appropriation of ideas in

one's work discernible in the other . It enables the reader
to appreciate the present by associating it with what he or
she knows about the past.

Amuta (1989:176) states that the original creative force of

poetry belongs to that spontaneity of relationships between
the poet and his live audience which was the norm in the oral
tradition of all societies.

Msimang (1981:8) defines influence as the presence of certain

elements in a latter work similar to those found in the
former work .. . such that it can be reasonably inferred that
the author of the lat ter work was consciously or
subconsciously influenced by t he former to produce such
elements.

The African poet never succeeded in running away from the art
of his traditional forebears. Influence can come from
within. It occurs among artists belonging to the same
 9
tradition as other traditions. Due to European influence to
African poetry, new poetic forms and themes were explored
with gradual and varying degrees of success.

Poetry may relatively be more easily understood if we examine

the relationship of poetry to casualty, history and
evolution. It is concerned with individual human experience
in terms of that individual's own sensibility.

Poetic influence need not make poets l ess original as often

it makes them more original though not necessarily better.

A text is a product of our life experiences or writes about

real life experiences, meaning will be attained from other
texts. The African poet is engaged in a struggle to maintain
his essential identity against the constricting measures of
other languages.

The importance of rhythm as influenced is inspired uniformity

in motion by giving birth to thoug ht and emotion as well as
vision. The semantic relationships that are established on
the basis of sound repetition included the relationships of
similarity and relationships of difference.
 10
Writers who produced the first works in poetry have a
considerable measure of prominence. A certain poet may be
regarded as outstanding because he has introduced a unique
style to the poetry of a language . A significant poet is
co un ted in the struggle against foreign domination and class
of racial injustice.

There is influence evident in Puleng ' s work especially in his

deep commitment to Christian values. In some poems there's
an idea of the gods wh i ch i s, in real ity , creations of human
beings, i nventing statements in their minds and then turning
round to worship them.

According to Iyasere (1975:102) the African poet never wholly

succeeds in running away from the art of his traditional
for ebears.

Trad i t i onal influence is most ev i dent in the aspect of the

stylistic techniques such as phrasal repetitive devices,
rhythm, metaphor, personification, etc .

Traditional poems of Puleng express strong emotions such as

love or jealousy or depict intense states of mind such as
adoration, ecstasy or despair.
 11

Due to i nfluence, a text is seen as an intertextual event

with twofold coherence: an intertextual one which guarantees
the inherent integrity of the text and an intertextual one
wh i ch creates structural difference between itself and other
texts .

The influences discernible in Puleng's poetry are

traditional, exotic and political influences.

2.1 THE ROLE OF INFLUENCE IN PULENG 'S POETRY

Influence has an effect upon the writer ' s creative process.
The poetic communication is influenced by intertextual
relations between words, verse lines, phrases, sentences or
stanzas i n a poem .

Communication is normally effective only to the extent that

it is selective of meanings which are recognised as
contextually relevant. In using language for communication
in the ordinary way, we enter into a kind of co-operative
contract whereby we undertake to achieve convergence on a
relevant outcome with the minimum of processing effort:

"Bolaodi bja rena ka lapeng le mahlong a setshaba,

E be leago le tswelopele yeo e se nago bogomo,
Mantsu a rena a be naka tseo di lekanego baletsi .
 12
Our rulership in the family and eyes of the nation,
Should be built in progress without an end,
Our voices should be whistles equal to the whistlers.

Additional words at the end of the first sentence can be:

'Setshaba seso' or 'sa rena ' meaning our nation. The noun
prefix for 'naka' is 'di-' which was omitted from 'dinaka'.
The proverb ' E be 1eago 1e tswe 1ope 1e' refers to 'kh utso'
thus peace . This phrase can be replaced by ' Go rene khutso'
thus ' let peace reign', without changing meaning.

The intertextual relations look at the metaphoric

construction in poetic language and syntactic foregrounding.
The poetic communi cat; on is dependent on the ana 1ys is of
foregrounded language.

Every poet is a being caught up in a dialectical relationship

such as of transference, repetition, error and communication
with other poets.

Puleng has a peculiar method of using material from

traditional narratives.
 13
2.2 TRADITIONAL INFLUENCE
Tradition is a matter of much wider significance which is
what makes the poet most acutely conscious of his place in
time of his contemporaneity.

Language and cultural ideology must find accommodation in

linguistic and cultural codes . Poetic verses were
distinguished according to the grouping of ideas. There is
no established rules as far as the form of stanzas in written
traditional poetry is concerned.

Pretorius (1989) stated that the first publication of

Northern Sotho poems, "Kgomo I a tshwa n, was pub 1 i shed in
1935. Phala, D.M. compiled a comprehensive collection of
traditional praise poems as important genre in traditional
literature known as 'direto'.

Traditionally, English poetry has been written in lines.

Another structural feature of more traditional poetry is the
refrain, usually a line which is repeated at fixed intervals
throughout the poem:

Ntlolerole ga e amuse leago,

Ntlolerole ga e amuse peakanyo,
Ntlolerole ga e amuse lerato,
Ntlolerole ga e amuse khutso.
(Kgaa Kgati ... 3).
 14
A dusty house does not bring unity,
A dusty house does not bring planning,
A dusty house does not bring l ove,
A dusty hous e does not bring peace.

From the verse above, 'ga e amuse' has been repeated several
times.A dusty house refers to a place where people fight.
The poet expla ins that people are not united, they cannot
plan together, they do not s how love to one another and as
a result there i s no peace in such a house. Each particular
poem contains within it a whole art of poetry with the
intention of using 1anguage as an end in i tse 1f. Its
originality has meaning on ly throug h implicit reference to
tradition. The solid ach i evement of the past is the best
guarantee of the future:
Barati le batsitsinkedi ba Segageso,
Ba hl abetswa seema se bohloko.
Homolang Bakwena ba meetse a pula,
E robetse phupung tsa bahu bagologolo tautona
Ditaol a e tlogetse tlogo l wana tsa Thulare,
(Ditlalemeso:2)
Lovers and developers of our culture,
They were injected with a painful idiom .
Be quiet ' people of the Crocodile ' of the rainy water
It slept at the grave of dead ancestors, the great lion.
The gods ' bones are left for Thulare ' s grandchildren.

The work of the good writer is imitated by other writers as

a reflection of valuable work . The style of O.K. Matsepe has
influenced some writers i n N. Sot ho. The poet reassures the
readers of his language that at least the deceased writer
left work for them to study thus his literary work.
 15
Most of the poems are characterised by heroism as supported
by various praise motifs. The praised one is usually
identified by means of a praise name or names:

0 be a le ntshe monna wa banna,

(Ditlalemeso:l) .
He was present man of men.

The images of physical characteristics used in praising this

man distinguished him from other men. Further on it explains
that he was a real writer:

La gadima bjalo ka legadima;

Mogale wa bogale polelong
Senatla sa gakopa
Mohu Oliver Kgadime Matsepe,
(Ditlalemeso:l).
It strikes like lightning;
The hero of heroes in speech
The hero of the Kopa tribe
The late, Oliver Kgadime Matsepe.

Lightning is something we are not used to everyday and we are

scared of it. Poetic language should be used in order to
insight the reader. Being short in speech is referring to
a good poetic expression or writer such as O.K. Matsepe. Not
everybody is good in delivering speech. The poet praises
Matsepe as 'the hero of heroes in speech!
 16
Amuta (1989:41) discovered that traditional thought in Africa
and elsewhere describes a pre-scientific mode of perceiving
reality, explaining events and seeking to effect changes in
the objective world through subjective as often magical
impulses uncorrected by rationa l enquiry. The relationship
between people and their gods was essentially an instrumental
one since they made the gods who existed in human image to
serve them:

Re tla e lema tshemo ya bophelo

Eupsa go fihla neng?
Dikgomonaka di ile,
Dipudi le dikgogo di fed il e;
Re phasitse,
Re laditse badimo
(Sefahlego ... 28)
We shall plough the field of life
But until when?
Horned cows are gone,
Goats and chickens are finished;
We have poured libation
We have soothed the gods.

The poet complains to the gods about the type of life without
peace whereas they are spending money on gods. The belief
in gods in turn influenced social action in a dialectical
process since people are slaughtering goats and chickens in
order to communicate with them . Others do that by asking
gods to strengthen them in life .
 17
Gabriel Okara had poems concerned with exploring the
dialectic between tradition and modern influences including
the influence of technology and Western civilisation. In
some, he drama t i sed the ide a that the gods are in rea 1i ty
creations of human beings who create figments in their minds
and then turn round to worship them. Puleng also has such
poems:

Ngwanaka,
Go Badimo le Modimo ikgethele,
Ga ke go katele setsiba ganong!
(Sefahlego ... 48).
My child,
Between gods and God make a choice,
I am not forcing you!

The poet advises his child in choosing whom to worship

between God and the gods. The poet i s not worried about the
child's choice. It may be that he believes in both God and
the gods or it may be that he does not want the child to
blame him thereafter but to bear the onus, if things go
wrong.

Traditional poems and songs in all countries tell stirring

stories to express strange emotions such as love, hate or
jealousy or depict intense states of mind such as adoration,
ecstasy or despair:
 18
Tsobana la pelo ya ka,
Bone la nao tsa ka
Tlhologelo ya moya wa ka.
(Seipone ... 25).

The flower of my heart,

The light of my feet,
Desires of my soul.

The poet used the diminutive ' -ana ' in 'tsobana la pelo ya
ka ' to express the love as compared to a small beautiful
flower

The poet expresses his feeling for the love of someone

compared to a star. The strong rhythms of the verses are
most effective in communicating experiences of this nature:

Naledi yeo e bonwago marung (line 7).

The star which is seen in the sky.

The star is very bright and symbo 1i ses the beauty of the
flowers. In the following lines the poet expresses how a man
hates others but expects them to love him:

Ge o tsena phulasa methepa e supana ka menwana,

Fela o a mmakatsa ka gore ga o na lerato
Eupsa o rata go ratwa o sa rate.
(Seipone ... 41)
When you enter, ladies point fingers at each other,
But you amaze me because you have no love
You want to be loved though you don't love.
 19
This suggests the change of mood from hatred to loving and
accepting others since the poet depicted an intense state of
adoration. This is a man who does not show 1ove to a
specific woman since they are pointing fingers at each other:

0 hloma bjang mola mpho tsa gago di kgahlisa?

Ga ke bone bosodi go wena leemo la gago
le a nkgahla .
(Seipone ... 42)
Your gifts are pleasing, what is wrong?
I don't see mistakes in you, your physique
is admirable to me.

In spite of his liable physical disposition, the character

has a moral weakness. He tends to be a source of conflict
among women.

2. 2.1 THE BASIC STRUCTURE OF THE PROVERB IS RETAINED

The structure of the proverb can be used afferently without
affecting its meaning. Various statements can be deduced
from the expression that ideas one has in mind can be of good
things or of sorrow:

0 rile tuu!
0 ja marapo a bjasa
Mogopolo o mo tsere,
0 mo isitse boratapelo;
0 phura madireng a lefase ka nosi.
(Seipone ... 10)
 20
He is just quiet!
He is deep in thought
Ideas overwhelm him
It took him to a place of its choice;
He thinks about world events.

The idiomatic expression 'Go tsewa ke mogopolo' implies being

deep in thought. Through a 11 the 1i nes the meaning is
retained that one usually seated in a quiet place thinks too
much since there ' s no disturbance. Forming important images
of appreciating poetry is important. The poet uses words
that create the intended image in the mind of the reader .

Reading a text is necessarily the reading of a whole system

of texts and meaning as always wandering around the text.
In poetry there should not only be 1anguage of ordinary
communication.

According to Eliot, there are 'The three voices of Poetry'

in various poems. Looking at Pu 1eng's poems, there are
relevant applications to Eliot 's view. Understanding a poem
means grasping its language as being orientated towards the
reader from a certain range of positions. He regards the
first voice as the voice of the poet talking to himself or
to nobody:
Ke hidinya sello
Ke kgethega dikudumela
Ke tsa bohloko bja pelomegokgo
(Sei pone ... : 6)
 21
I am crying loudly
I am sweating excessively
They are of troubled heart tears
The poet explains the situation he is faced with. The
proverbs used portray a picture of the struggle the poet
experiences. The emphasis is placed on the expression 'ke
hidinya sel lo ' meaning crying loudly . The verb ' kgethega '
can be replaced by 'rotha' thus the flow of the sweat.

The second voice is th e poet addressing an audience by

imparting someth ing of himself to an audience or characters
as influenced by the characters he creates

Ke go rwesa diala
Wena mma pelegisi
Ya dikokoto l e matsalaka.
(Ditlalemeso:26)
I give you honour
You midwife
Of the brave and the coward .
This is the voice most often and most clearly heard in
poetry. Puleng's praise poems have thi s technique frequently
us ed .

The third voice is of the poet attempting to create a

dramatic character speaking in verse. He says what he can
say within the limits of one imaginary character. The poet
chooses expressions which are r ich in imagistic and emotional
associations:
 22
Bana beso; Lerato, Kagiso le tlhomphano,
Tse tharo tse ke maphuthaditshaba,
Ke magato a tlhabologo.
(Kgaa Kgati ... :18)
Brothers and sisters; love, unity and respect.
These three are for nation-building,
They are the steps of progress.

The poet 1i fts up three essent i a 1 e 1ements necessary for

nation-building. These are a key to both community and
family bondedness.

Puleng's poetry brings extra pleasure, and it may imbue

satisfaction on readers. The readers dwell with satisfaction
upon his views and approach of such proverbs. Effective and
sensitive choice of words by the poet formulate a good poem.

2.2.2 THE STRUCTURE OF THE PROVERB IS ALTERED

Proverbs express some homely truth in poetry. According to
Moleleki (1988:23) the syntactical change results differently
in the conceptual structure of the new form as compared to
the original one.

Puleng has a tendency of changing the set structural pattern

of Northern Sotho proverbs to enrich his poetry:
 23
0 rutilwe ke mang sehlogo se sekaaka
Wena mohlokalesoko, kgaugelo le monamoledi?
0 khupamarama ya dikhupamarama gobane ga
o na molomo.
(Ditlalemeso:l2)
Who taught you so much cruelty
You without pity, mercy and defence?
You are a secret of secrets because you
are not talkative.

The original proverb is 'Khupamarama re hwa nayo' meaning,

we die with the secret, which has been altered to '0
Khupamarama ya di khupamarama gobane ga o na mo 1omo'. from
this phrase 'ga o na molomo' means that nothing can be said
or you cannot utter a word.

The secret here refers to death which is regarded as cruel

to us because it does not give a warning. The day is not
known by man.

2.3 EXOTIC INFLUENCES

All forms of influence that are evidently of Western origin
are exotic influences. Modern poetry is different from
ancient.

What is common to all modern poetry is the assertion or the

assumption that the syntax is wholly different from syntax
as understood by logicians and grammarians.
 24
Boulton (1982 : 112) states that the organized structure of a
poem is part of its beauty, and a l ogical sequence, a process
of thought, is a large part of the structure.

Ka pene ke mologi
Ke mmetl i
Ke moagi
Ke lelopo
Ke ngaka
Ke sefela phodisamatswalo
Ke moratimphela wa botho le setho
Khutso yagwe o e theile mpheleng ya lerato.
(Direti tse nne, y . 3 ... 30)
I knit with a pen
I am a carpenter
I am a bui lde r
I am a dancer
I am a doctor
I am t he hymn, the soother.
I am the lover of kindness and humaness.
Hi s Qeace is based on love.

Puleng ' s poetry has reference to God. Christian influence

was regarded as of utmost importance in Puleng's work.

2.3.1 BIBLICAL INFLUENCE

Biblical influence is evident in Puleng ' s poetry . With the
religion of Christ there ' s reverence in our heart, life of
our souls and conduct. The re l ation of poetry to religion
entails conviction and habit of a personal communion between
the soul and God.
 25
Without poetry and religion the history of humankind would
have been darker than it is since the faith that stimulates
our efforts and increases our momentum, multiplies our
wander i ngs .

Wena 0 a tseba, 0 ntsebile ke sa le popelong,

Le meleko wa mpha e ntekanego;
(Qireti tse nne, Vo l . 3 ... 29)
You know, You knew me before birth,
You gave me suitable relat i ves;

The poet explains that God knows everything about humankind.

Some people never questioned the state of affairs into which

they were born. Puleng had several poems emphasising man as
God ' s creati on. An advice i s clearly given on how a
Christian should act. To enable him to act rightly emphasis
was placed on the value of prayer:

Aa ngwana!
Botse bja atla tsa Mmopi,
(Ditlalemeso:33)
Aa, child!
The beauty of God ' s hand,
 26
Puleng argues that man is God ' s creation, and profess advice
on how a Christian should act . Biblical influence is also
exhilarated in hi s understand ing of prayer:

0 re phol ose bobeng .

Gobane mmuso ke wa Gago
Le maatla le tumiso
Ka go sa feleng,
Amen
(The Lord's Prayer)
Deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom
The Power. and the glory
For ever and ever.
Amen.
To the poet, prayer i s a pillar, it captures the body and
soul which is tired, It is a soother which releases a person
from chains of the enemy.

Religion finds expression in action and in doctrine. A

deeply felt conviction underlies the poet's message and gives
power to the wealth of argument and illustration by which it
is conveyed. Biblical images used are recognised in:

Mohla Haleluja di ba aparetse le matshwenyego, ba re:

"Jehova re gaugele, Jesu Morwamotho re swarele
makgopo,
Re fe khutso le kagiso o lebalele dibe le melato!"
(Sei pone ... 19).
On the day of disillusionment it affected them with
their problems, they say:
Jahweh have mercy on us, Jesus the son of
man forgive us our transgression,
Give us peace and prosperity, forgive sins and
trespasses!
 27
The reference from the Bible is in the Lord's prayer. The
wonderful complexity of human nature is established through
poetry by allowing one to share the life of others at the
deepest possible levels. The concept of truth is involved
in its concept of humanity:

Ke tsebile Modimo
Ka lahla badimo,
Ke bone khutso le Phologo.
(Kgaa Kgati ... 11) .
I knew God
I threw away the gods,
I saw peace and salvation.

In the Bible, Esther and Ruth have so much significance that

one is struck by poetic beauty and construction of the text.
There exists simi 1a ri ties between Pu 1eng's poems and the
Biblical texts alluded. For this reason, there are
discernible qualities in Puleng's poetry.

0 sikere boikarabelo,
0 lebeletswe ke bana ba thari.
(Sefahlego ... :55)
You bore responsibility,
You are looked at by the descendants of the nation.

Images portrayed here by children looking at the woman who

has res pons i bil i ty show that they are in need of he 1p.
Puleng further explained their situation while waiting for
help:
 28
Bangwe o ba ahlamisitse melomo,
Gwa thunya dikanono tsa dipene,
Gongwe wa retwa.
(Sefahlego ... 55)
Some have opened their mouths,
Pens exp l ode like Canons,
Elsewhere you are praised.

Apparent 1y, the peop 1e' s needs were achieved because the
woman is praised and the impression given by the sentence:
' Pens explode like canons' imp l ies that the literary work was
good. Puleng shows that personality is everything in art and
poetry. It is human warmth and almost human substance which
gives to all things that quality which charms us.

The Christian world discovered that indeed our sweetest songs

are those which tee l of saddest thoughts, because it is
better to suffer than to lose the power or suffering:

Godimo ga hlogo ya ka
0 beile letsatsi mosegare,
Bosego o mpeetse ngwedi le dinaledi,
Dietsa tsekhwi di na le morero le nna.
Se di khutisetse fahlego sa ka.
(Sefahlego ... 24)
On top of my head
You set the sun daylight,
At night you set the moon and the stars,
These lights have a purpose with me.
Don't hide them from my face.
Pu 1eng used the figure of speech, metonymy by using 'the
sun', 'moon ' and 'stars' as God. They are the light for man
not to be in darkness. Further, he said:
 29
Nthute nnete,
Le ge e baba go phala lengana (p25)
Teach me the truth,
Even if i t's sour more than the traditional
flue-medicine.

The poet pleads that he be gu i ded to do good even if it is

not easy to remain faithful at all times. His wish in life
i s to help others and not be buri ed as a sinner:

Se mpoloke ke sa phela,
Ntire molokolodi wa setshaba seso.
(Sefahlego ... 25)
Don ' t bury me while I still live,
Make me a liberator of our nation.

Puleng pleads for his life. He believes that he still has

to render service to the community. That service is
characterised as liberation.

The effort is required to free our introspective rapture and

suffering from the symptoms of sin.

Mbiti (1969:229) stated that Christianity made a great

contribution to Christendom through scholarship,
participation in church councils defence of the faith,
movements like monasticism, theology, translation and
preservation of the scriptures :
 30
A hleng mabati a bophelo ke a mantsi,
Bohle ba nkgisets ana mafetla ba baka
botseno?
A hl eng mabati akhwi a kg ak ilwe ka boitapiso
Kudumela tsa bogale di welwa ke maruru?
A hl eng batseni ba le putlaputlanong ka megokgo.
(Sefahlego ... 50)
Why are the doors of life so many,
All are they sme lling the sweat competing to enter
Why are th e doors painted with strive,
The sweat of the brave are covered with cold feelings?
Why are the in comers in such a hurry with tears.

Various images can be deduced from here that these doors may
be referring to life wherein different people have different
ways to choose in life. These doors can also refer to the
entrance in the church wherein everyo ne is welcomed. People
may be dancing for the Lord as some are sweating. The
significance of t ears is evide nt in:

"In his life on earth Jesus made his prayers and

requests with loud cries and tears of God, who could
save him from death ".
(Good News: Hebrews 5:7)

There is an inspirat i on, hope and courage in these words:

Mo l alatladi,
0 seipone se se kgethegilego sa leratadima,
Botse bja mebala ya gago
Bo phala bja rena batho bja magoro le mellwane.
(Sefahlego ... 35).
Rainbow,
You are a sacred mirror in t he sky,
The beauty of your col ours
Is better than ours of clans and boundaries.
 31
The image portrayed here is that the poet admires life where
there ' s hope and courage like the beautiful colours of the
rainbow.

Pu l eng has a stronger inspirational effect because he added

moral and spiritual events to give i t a dimension that goes
beyond information or entertainment:

Le nna nkuke ke bapele le wena

(p35)
Carry me also, so that I be next to you.
Being next to a beautiful thing brings pleasure:
Nna le wena re be bonolo bjalo ka dinku
(p35)
That you and I should be polite like sheep.

The sheep symbolises forgiveness and humility, politeness and

to l erance, as well as maintaining peace.

Religious writing covers a multitude of different subjects

and reaches into the lives of many different kinds of people.
The main objective in all religious writings is to inspire
by reaching into the reader's lives and move them to action
1n the right direction.
 32
2.3.2 HYMNAL REFRAIN
Ntuli: (1984:200) states that a refrain is a line or a
portion of it which is repeated at regular intervals.
A refrain is most effective if it is used for
underlining some idea.

Puleng does not follow this format in all hymnal poems

but at times uses refrain according to how he aims to
achieve the poetic communication of a particular poem:

Lesoko la gago
Ke le bone bonnyaneng
Ka kgodiso le phepo
Tseo di nkatlilego
Matso le maboo.
(Ditlalemeso:26)
Your mercy
I have seen it from childhood
by growth and care
They brought me up
The beginning and the end.

There's a marked resemblance to some hymnal refrains which

are contained in the Lutheran Church hymns, 'Di fe l a tsa
Kereke':

Lesoko la morena Jesu Kriste le le rato la Modimo

Le Kgwerano ya Moya o mokgethwa di be
le rena ka go fela. Amen
(Hymn:108).
The Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ~ ~nd the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Sp1r1t be with us all.
Amen
 33
The benedictional hymn is often sung during and towards the
end of the service. Puleng has many poems influenced by the
hymns:

0 se ntahle Kahlolong,
Se mphelele pelo,
Ntokolole poifong,
Radikgaugelo
(Hymn:156)

Do not throw me into judgement,

Be patient with me
Release me from fear
God of mercy

The influence of the above hymn is evident in:

Nthope o ntokolle,
Bja ka bothata bo gae ga mahlaku.
(Sefahlego ... :54)
Capture me and release me
My problem is at home.

This hymn ent itled ' 0 se ntlhokofatse ' meaning do not punish
me is based on Psalm 6. The poet appeals for God's
forgiveness of sins and protection.

There's a marked resemblance to the hymnal refrains contained

in the Dutch Reformed Church hymnal book, 'Hosanna'.

Tseleng ena ya bophelo

Hammoho ha ba hata,
Ba felehetse. Morena,
Ba nesetse ka letsoho
(Hymn:394v.5)
 34
The hymn 'Morena. banyadi bana' has influ enced Puleng's poem
on marriage. According to the hymn, married people should
focus on God ' s blessings accompanying them in life:
Lenyalo ke tatamoloko
Le kgweraro ya tlhago
Le setswalle sa makgonthe
Le peu yeo e sa onalego
Sa mafelelo , ke yona nyalo.
(Kgaa Kgati . . . :l4)
Marriage is the source of the relative
And the fellowship in nature
An true relationship
And the seed that never rot
The end of it, is the marriage.

Christianity in Puleng's poetry is realised through his

praise poems. In most of his poems, God is praised.

2.4 POLITICAL INFLUENCE

Political influence emerged from man ' s relationship with his
fellow men and experiences in life.

Moleleki (1988:45) in reference to Maphalla ' s poetry

discovered that his world-view is consistent with the socio-
political sit uation in which he finds himself as well as the
historical epoch in which he lives, it i s to a great extent,
influenced by the Christian teachings.

Political speech and writing are largely the defence of the

 35
indefensible. Political language has t o consist largely of
euphemism, question-begging and sheer cloudy vagueness:

0 fulere, o ile;
0 ile kodinko molapomoswa na
(Ditlalemeso:l)
He turned back, he i s gone;
He went deep into the dark valley.

Euphemi sm has been used because the word ' molapomoswana' as

the 'dark valley' is the indirect term used for the grave.
The expression ' o fulere' and ' o il e ' impli es that he is
dead.

The type of question-begging situation in Puleng's poetry is

about his search for t he truth in life:
Re gokae ka thereso lehono?
Re weditswe ke bomang?
Ba re boditse eng?
(Kgaa Kgati ... 39)
Where are we regarding the t r uth today?
Who has mislead us?
What did they tell us?

According to Mb iti (1969), one of the most serious problems

precipitated by city life in Afr i ca is the situation which
forces men to work in towns while their wives and children
rema in in the country. It can be partly because of shortage
of housing in the towns or because there i s land and
livestock property in the country which must be looked after:
 36
Ke sentse eng?
Ke go diretse eng?
(Sefahlego ... 29)
What wrong have I done?
What have I done to you?

From the poem 'Ke be ke 1e motho ' , the poet's questions

reveal that there are problems at that stage as compared to
childhood. He wishes to know why should he suffer.

Ntshwarele ke go phoseditse;
Ngwana ' phosa dira ga a bolawe (line 9) .
Forgive me if I have wronged you;
A child who does mistakes should not be killed.

The poet pleads for forgiveness so that he may live. He is

working hard without progress:

Ke moepi wa gauta le malahla (line 10).

I am a digger of gold and coal.

The poet added that even if he is working hard, his family

is suffering:

Moputso wa ka ke lehlapa lapeng la ka,

Mphufutso wa phatla ya ka ke lefeela (line 15)
My salary is an insult to my family,
The sweat on my forehead is nothing.

The images portrayed here imply that the poet is humiliated,

suffering, oppressed and rejected . The reader may pity the
Poet especially when he says:
 37
Ke tla ja eng?
Ke tla nwa eng?
Ke phelela eng?
(Sefahlego .. . 29)
What wi 11 I eat?
What wi 11 I drink?
What should I live f or?

The experience of hung er and thirst worr i es the poet

tremendous ly.
 38
3. THEMES

In this chapter, we attempt to analyze themes in Puleng ' s

poetry.

Pul eng ' s poetry has a very broad range of subjects with
various themes i nvo 1ved. These themes wi 11 be considered
presently. Emphasis here will be on those themes the poet
developed, so to speak.

Pretorius (1989:12} In poetry, the theme is the main idea

in the poem as it is the interpretation of life conveyed by
the poem as a whole. Al l details, ideas and poetic devices
which function in the poem contribute in some way or other
towards developing the themes and ensuring unity. It is
s igni ficant only if what the poet utters touches the reader
by its relevance to human life.

Reas ke (1966 : 42) defines themes as the contrast concept

developed in a poem with th e basic idea, concept which the
poet is trying to convey and which accordingly, he allows to
direct his imagery.

The identificati on of the theme of any poem will differ from

individual to individu al due to the reader's response to some
facts of the poem, as we 11 as on the poet's emphasis and
 39
intention.

However, the interpretation of the author and that of readers

may differ and may bring about different meanings. The
understanding or interpretation of the poem on the part of
the reader irrespective of the poet's intentions, required
objective assessment rather than subjectivity.

Poetry appeals to our senses and love of rhythm and musical

harmony as much as i t overlays everything i ncl udi ng our
logical minds. It can arouse us and depress us, cheer us an d
agitate us . One never stops considering that perhaps that
is not what the poet meant at all as the poet may have meant
many other things.

Ngara (1990:199) states that the genuine poet has a social

visi on expressed and encaps ul ated in an appropriate style
which enab l es the reader to participate in an exploration of
that vision through the artistic form of the word.

3.1 CULTURE
Poet i c form i s a s t rate gi c answer to c u1 t ur e and soc i a 1
conditions. The poem draws upon the language and ideas of
a given cult ure and shares the values and perhaps the
confusion of its environment:
 40
Homolang Bakwena ba meets e a pula,
E robetse phupung tsa bahu bagologolo tautona,
Ditaola e tlogeletse tlogolwana tsa Thulare;
Bosasa ke rena-motswagabo ga a laele!
(Ditlalemeso:2)
Be quiet ' people of the crocodile' of the rainy wate r,
It s lept at the graves of dead ancestors, the
great lion,
The gods ' bones are left for Thulare's grand-children,
Tomorrow is us - Don't bid farewell from home!

From the views that culture refers to the rules according to

which a partic ular society expresses itself with regard to
thinking, feeling, socia l life, moral measures and lega l
norms; thus these rules are embedded in a particular ground
motive that expresses in its turn man ' s relationship with his
origin. Man can live from his basic relationship with God
or idol and this relationship determines his actions . We see
people who practice it today !

Puleng used praise names for the known writer who has passed
away. It i s of pra ct i ce that when one is dead, praises are
attributed to him. The consoling words to the mourners are
always that we will follow, as the poet concluded:

Bosasa ke rena -
(Diotlalemeso:2).

Tomorrow it will be ourselves -

In a human context this motive becomes a social motive and

 41
gi ves a particula r soc i ety its particular philosophy and
nationa l character .

Amuta (1989:177 ) ment i ons t hat in the African world, t he

histori ca l necess i t y i n wh i ch the poet as a man of culture
devotes hi s art and 1i fe to the pursuit of justice and
freedom has become part of t he very legitimacy of the poet i c
undertaking. The sign i f i cant poet in Africa at a time li ke
t hi s is i n the struggle against foreign domination and class
and racia l injustice :

Nthute bodiredi le t i relo

Go ba moratho wa khutso
Gape le go ba manamelelo a tirisano,
Ke bule molomo ka maleba,
Ke bole l e le barwa le barwed i ,
Kudu barwedi, barwad i ba bokamoso,
Bona matsoba, mebala ya setshaba
Bona bahlathollodi ba dinyepo tsa merafe.
Nthute go bolela le barwa bathekgahistori,
Bona babetli ba ditlhologelo tsa bosetshaba.
(Sefahlego ... :25)
Teach me how to work and serve
To be a bridge of peace,
Again to be steps towards communication,
To open the mouth accordingly,
To speak to sons and daughters,
Especially daughters, carriers of the future,
They, the flowers, colours of the nation
They the interpreters of idioms of various nations,
Teach me to talk to the sons supporting history,
They the carpenters of the desires of the nation.

The poet prays for guidance of the Holy Spirit in doing good,
striving for peace, mainta i ning communication with various
 42
people irrespective of their colour. The image of flowers
as colours of the nations shows the poet's admiration of the
people's communication and bu il ding one nation together. By
comparing the peop 1e with flowers, the poet indicates his
hope of cont inuous development.

Nkos i ( 1981: 152) argues that the poem does not fi na 11 y

achieve a proper synthesis of the diverse re 1i gi ons and
cultures which African writers often profess to be their goal
that just as the Christians imagery dominates the poem; in
i ts conclusion, the poem also presents us with the triumph
of that uncorrupted Christian ideal:

Modimo wa ka anke go rene botho le setho,

Re dule sebesebe, re se supane ka ditshosa - bophelo!
(Sefahlego ... :25)
My God, let humanity reign,
So that we stay peacefully, we should
not point fingers at one another!
The theme of culture conflict and the need to reconcile the
various strands of it, especially the Western and the African
tradition, is a major preoccupation of other poets, but
 43
Pu l eng's poetry appeals to some understanding of one
another ' s culture:

Ntire molokolodi wa setshaba seso,

Ke hlomole meet l wa ya bogologolo,
Bao ba bintshwago mantshegele ka kubu
Ba se na molomo, ke be molomo wa bona.
(Sefahlego . .. :25)
Make me a liberator of my people,
That I may remove thorns of the ancients,
For those lashed to dance
May I be the spokesperson for the voiceless.

Puleng follows the same pattern of constructing meaning by

a careful grouping of images through which culture conflict ,
social dislocation and alienation can be glimpsed as though
refracting glass. By removing thorns which we know are
painful to the body means rescuing the oppressed. The poet's
inspiration for God's deliverance in relation to Exodus
14:29-30 when God saved the Israelites as they were slaves
in Egypt. The images brought out by the poet that they are
voiceless means that they could not say anything and had no
power to escape as slaves.

In South Africa as elsewhere in Africa, women have played a

prominent part in the quest for freedom. Some poems are
about the underprivileged- workers, black township children
and drunkards in the streets:
 44
Ke seipone se t lil e go phumola madimabe,
Se etetswe, ke Afr ika yeso!
(Sefahlego ... :51)
He is a mirror to wi pe misfortune ,
He leads our Africa

The woman is advised to gu ide chi 1dren by 1ove towards a

better future as they are leaders of tomorrow. The woman
does not have income but is advised to breastfeed with love.
The breastfeeding mainly refers to proper upbringing of
ch il dren.

Bangwe ba phathakgane
Eupsa yo Mongwe ga a bonale,
Bangwe ba a utlautlana
Yo mongwe o fekeetsa yo mongwe ka maatla,
Na ge le bone le sa time ga Bra Joe
Yena o robala bjang mpherehlakanong wo?
(Sefahlego ... : 45)
Some Embraced one another
But the other one is not seen,
Others pull each other
The one overpowers the other .
Now that you see it is never distinguished
at Bra Joe ' s place
How does he sleep where there's so
much commotion?

The ideas that the shebeen is always full is an indication

that people ' s lives are destroyed by Liquor:

Mosupologo go fihla Lamorena,

Go swana fela :
Ba tswa ba tekateka,
Bangwe ba tsena ba tekateka
Ba tswa ba kukilwe : (45)
 45

From Monday to Sunday,

It ' s the same, they go out
staggering.
Some return staggering .
Others are carried out.

The people are drunk everyday since the poet mentioned that
it is from Monday to Sunday.

According to Ngara, poetry and song are the most popular and
accessible means of creative expression and communication in
South Africa .

Le ge bantlhoi
Ba ka dira mehlamo ka nna,
Lefa la pelo ya ka ke Morena.
(Kgaa Kgati. .. : 13)
Even if my enemi es
Can make a joke about me,
God is the wealth of my heart.

Such art forms are often the means of expressing feelings

about life under apartheid. Pul eng's poetry expresses life
from all spheres . He trusts in God:

Go ka befa goba gwa loka,

Gwa tsakametsa magadima,
Ke botile Morena.
(Kgaa kgati ... :13)
It can either be good or bad,
Even if li ghtning can strike
I trust in God.
 46
Th i s poem is a song found in various hymns such as in (1)
Difela tsa Kereke, No. 280: ' Morena, ke wa gago ' . (2)

Tinsimu ta Vakriste, No. 33: ' Hosi yanga, nda ku lava'.

Through these hymns, the poet appea 1s to God to be his

strength and shield as well as hold him with his powerful
hand. Puleng also l oves choirs and has compiled the
fo ll owing songs:
(1) Sello sa Mohlologad i
(2) Hunter

' Sello sa Mohlologadi ' i s about a widow who was blamed by the
in-laws that she has killed her husband.

' Hunter ' is about friendship . The song was dedicated to

f r iends. Pu leng's question was: What is friendship?

South Afr i can poetry is a very broad subject and such

conclusions as we might draw cannot do complete justice to
the topic, consideri ng that there is a very large number of
poets involved:

Ke reng ka re ke le moepathutse
Lerumo la ka la ganelela tlasetlase?
A hleng atla tsa ka e l e lerumo lefepadiji?
Ke moleti eupsa ke letilwe,
Ke moapei madimabe ke leswa maganogano.
(Sefahlego .. . :36)
 47
Why me a plant digger
My richness remain very deep?
Why are my hands' richness befit those who
do not work?
I await while being waited for
I am a cook unfortunately I eat the
leftovers.

The poet has in mind some categories of work, hence the

phrase ' plant digger ' , implying manual labour. For him a
manual labour is executed through physical hard work. From
the third line, 'lefepadiji ' means those who benefit
materially without the necessary hard work required.

3.2 DEATH
Ntuli (1978:130) regards death as an invisible phenomena
wherein poets use many devices to present it as a concrete
image:
Swarang diragamabje le bora bja ntwa,
Ganong la tau re yo tsena ga go kolobe
ya lesalamorago,
Maswabi akhwi a tlo fetoga leru leo
le rothisago!
(Seipone ... :31)
Hold your stoneslings and bow of war,
In the lion's mouth we will enter, no
pig will remain behind,
These shame will turn into a rain.

Images portrayed here that people should hold their

stones 1i ngs as if they are going to fight means that one
should be prepared to defend oneself against enemies (death).
 48
"To enter the lion ' s mouth " means the grave after death. The
expression ' rainy c 1oud ' used here may be interpreted as
tears from the eyes.

Puleng the poet, used personification when he speaks about

death because he addresses it as an enemy which fights man,
an enemy which brings shame .

The brutality of death is portrayed when the poet describes

people dying:

Maatla a gago a siisa,

0 fenya bagale
0 thopa metse ya mafsega.

Your strength is frightening

You defeat heroes
You capture the families of cowards.

The poet emphasises that no one has the power to prevent

death. For this reason, he conceives death as a powerfu 1
event seen defeating even heroes. He has a tendency of
questioning some events related to death:

Aowi !
Na mahlo a tla re boledisa maaka?
Na lehu le a phela lehono?
(Sefahlego ... :49)
Oh no!
Will the eyes make us lie?
Does death live these days?
 49
Puleng's questions show that he does not understand all about
death s i nee no one can cont ro 1 or stop it. The quest i on
remains, is there any motive behind death:

Bophelong bjo bokopanakopana,

Bophelong bja mebalabala;
Na nna mmala wa ka ke ofe?
(Sefahlego ... : 12)
In a very short life,
A colourful life;
Actually what is my colour?

The poet does not close his eyes to the possibility that the
day for one ' s death is unknown . No one can deny that that
is possible. To most poets, inspiration comes when it wills
and in strange ways as varying greatly in strength as wel l
as the length of is visitation.
 50
3.3 INSPIRATION

When a modern poet is inspired, it means that the poet is

filled with an unaccountable power, enabling him to create
better than at any other time. The existence of inspiration
in whatever poems is assumed especially when dealing with
imaginary events:

Mebala ya Turfloop ke diphaphosi;

Ka gohle ge o sepela o hema thuto.
(Kgaa kgati ... :56)
The colours of Turfloop are rooms;
Wherever you go you inhale education.

In this stanza, the poet is inspired by education. The

phrase "inhale education" in line 2 refers to learning. The
poet explains thus:

E duma e etswa marung!

Ya nela mogopolo,
Dimela gwa hloga tswelopele'
Peu ya ba tsebo,
Go hlogile dikalakala go tswa kaleng,
Dikalakala tsa yona tsa bonegela lefase (V.3)
Its sounds come from the clouds!
It waters the minds,
Plants protruding show progress:
Seeds become knowledge.
Small branches are protruding from the
main branch,
Its branches brighten the world.

The suggestive power that one has re-organised the

characteristics if effective diction is a distinguishing
 51
feature of successful images . In line 5, the growing plants
refers to learning and success. The branches brightening the
world refer to learning and success. The branches as light
give an image of successful leaders 1ike lectures at
Universities.

Turfloop! nna le wena,

A re be lesika la kgolaganyo;
Re roke sesego se tee seo elego bokamoso.
(Kgaa Kgati ... :58)
Turfloop! You and I,
Let us be a family of unity;
We sow one granary which is of future.

The poet addresses Turfloop University as if it is a human

being, thus personification. By saying that they can live
together for a brighter future he has confidence in his
studies. That is to say, in the quality of education that
the university offers a bond is created. Puleng's poetry has
inspiration of spiritual sources:

0 tseba bonami bja lefase le bophagamo bja dithaba,

0 ramatete, o ramahlale, o ramehlolo, o ramatlotlo,
Borena bjago bo tsebega kgole le kgauswi nageng,
Medimo ka moka ya ditshaba ke diswantshi.
(Sei pone ... : 13)
You know the size of the world and the
height of mountains,
You are a mysterious father, you are a tricky father,
You are a miraculous father, you are treasurer father,
Your kingship is known far and near the field,
The gods of all nations are just pictures.
 52
God ' s praises reveal to us how the poet was inspired by God's
greatness above all things. God is incomparable to the gods.
For th i s reason the gods are linked with mere pictures: non-
l i vi ng objects:

0 kgosi ya borena kgosi ya tokologo

"Alfa " le "Omega " o Modimo wa boitshepo!
(Seipone .. . :13)
You are the greatest king, king of freedom.
Alpha and Omega, You are the God to be trusted!

People are set free because of God ' s greatness. The poet's
praise of God as the Alpha and Omega has reference from the
Bible in: Revelation 22:13

"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the
First and the Last". These show that God is the only Creator
and knows everything. He knows what is our future but we
cannot predict that .

God's kingdom does not end but it exists to eternity.

Some natural things are also a source of inspiration to the

poet. God knows all things in the world and his greatness
is known by the field. In the field where there are trees
and flowers, the poet sees the beauty of God's creation. The
beauty of the field also gives images of people knowing God.
 53
3.4 NATURE
Dallas (1972:44) states that Poetry has a very wide range in
pleasure by embracing every pleasure of which man is capable
and gives it a peculiar tone with regard to which it will
ever hold good:

Mobu o kgosi ya bophelo ke a go enela,

Godimo ga gago go tletse dimakatso tsa tlhago;
Tsohle ke matete a Jehova re a di amogela,
(Ditlalemeso:53).
Soil, you are the king of life I swear,
On top of you there are amazing things of nature;
All are miracles of Jahweh, we accept them.

The poet started the poem with imaginative approach of using

personification in addressing the soil as king. Different
natural objects are addressed as if they will respond. The
cruelty of the soil is portrayed when the poet says:

Mohla re kotimela o tlile go re putetsa.

(Ditlalemeso:53).
When we die you will embrace us.

Gentz (1982:13) mentioned factors involved in the

development of the soil that human interference must not be
overlooked. Some soil have been brought into cultivation in
comparatively recent times whilst others may have been in
human occupation or at least affected by human activities for
thousands of years.
 54
The poet later praised the soil that he is king everywhere,
even in America and Africa his word is known and heard. Such
descriptions are indications of God as the creator of all
things.
 55
4. IMAGERY
In this section, images portrayed in the poetry of Pu 1eng
wi 11 be reflected. The purpose of imagery is to speak
direct ly to the imagination through senses.

Lewis (1968:40) mai ntain s that the imagery of a poem is part

of a living growth, even decorative or conventional images
can hardly be detached for examination without losing some
of their sparkle. To him an image is "a picture made out of
words " and that "a poem may itse lf be an image composed from
a multiplicity of images ".

Kobo yekhwi ke kobo ya mankga retla,

Hleng ba e aperego ba sa kwe phefo?
Ga ba kgalege eupsa ba rata go kgala,
Ts oh le ba di bonago ke mahumo.
(Seipone: .. . :59)
This gown is an old atti re,
Why are the people weari ng it feel warm?
They don't want to be discipled but they do it
to others .
They are co ncerned with richness.

Various interpretations can be deduced from this stanza. the

' gown ' can refer to ' Toga' for graduates or the knowledge one
has or the type of character in one. The reason that these
people don ' t want to be disciplined may be because of one's
pride or reasona bl e arguments from one ' s viewpoints.
 56
Imagery can be regarded as that which i s seen ot herwi se t han
by t he eyes . Its effect i ve us e i s res pons i b1e for t he
success and endurance of poetry.

Imagery is essential to poetry for t he reason t hat its

f i nis h, exactitude and reality are indi spensab l e to t hought
which reaches out beyond th e bounds of commonpl ace
observation and speculati on. And to secure these qualities
dur i ng the reading of poe try unu sually creat i ve or re-
creative powers are necessa ry.

If any of the aspect s of a poem i s t o receive extra

attention, it should be imagery whi ch requires a more
de 1i ca t e apprehension . Imagery i s used i n order to make
readers di stinctly aware of what th e poet i s impressed by .
Art demand s the part i ci pa t i on of powerf u1 fee 1i ngs in the
experiences it provides .

If i magery i s not used, th en a poem will be merely a flow of

ordinary words, vague refere nces and genera l isation. A poem
often arouses excitement by making a pattern of images so
that the reader becomes not so mu ch f asc inated by meaning as
st imulated by sensation .
 57
Poetry can be viewed as l anguage usage that creates
di s t i net i ve work pictures to communicate experiences and
i deas , it creates i mages of things thus the way they look,
fee l sou nd, etc ; in order to help communicate what the poet
in tends.

Peck and Coyle (1984:39) regarded imagery as working in two

ways; an association of something negative with negative
images creates a more forceful sense of what is unpleasant
i n l i fe. The associat i on of something positive with
pos i tive images creates a forceful impression on the
preferred alternative. In both instances the idea is made
r i cher, more complex and more interesting through
association:

Ke lenaba le legolo leo le hlomolago bophelo

(Dithalemeso:51)
It is the great enemy which destroys life.

The succession of negative circumstances intensifies one's

imagery of sadness and depression:

Ke tli l e go aparelwa ke boso ka hlobogwa ga bohloko

(Ditlalemeso:51)
Bl ackness (death) will embrace me and they shall
painfully mourn.

Death i s something unpleasant to us . Images are to be judged

 58
accord i ng to the creative power, the connotative richness of
i ts content and the harmonious un i ty as well as fusion of its
elements :

Ke makhura lefehlo wa tlo l a ka ona dipale

ga o tswe,
(Ditlalemeso: 62)
It is the oil of motivation you smear and
no scratches will appear.

Imag i nary is a comparison having a special force and identity

from the peculiar aesthetic and concentrative form of poetry:

Ke sediba sa bohlale ke tsositse meela ya bomakgoni,

(Ditlalemeso: 63)
It is the dam of the wi se, I have frightened
the flow of the experienced.

Education i s presented as soothing and nourishing by the

poet .

Cuddon (1980:49) says that imagery is vital to the study of

poetic style and should be used to include images and figures
of speech . He regarded allusion, simile, personification
metaphor and symbolism as worth in terms of poetic style. He
stressed the point that many images are conveyed by
figurative language.
 59
4.1 METAPHOR
According to Brooks and Warren (1960:205) metaphors are often
defined as implied comparisons and this view has its element
of truth, though some authorities see an essential difference
in that metaphors boldly assert an identity.

Scheiber (1969: 43) regarded the function of a metaphor as

turning something into another by transforming certain
characteristics of the metaphori ca 1 object to the 1 i bera 1
once, while yet never 1et t i ng us forget that the 1 i tera 1
object is itself.

Pretori us ( 1989 : 32) states that in Northern Sotho praise

poems, metaphorical langu age i s extensively used. The praised
one is presented as a hero and to express his exceptional
characteristics, he is often compared with some kind of
animal:

E Robetie phupung tsa ba hu bagologolo tautona

(Ditlalemeso: 2)
He s l ept in the shadow of the old dead male lion.

Matsepe ' s bravery is compared to that of a lion:

Moga l e wa bagale polelong

Senatla sa gaK6pa,
Mohu Oliver Kgadime Matsepe
(Ditlalemeso: 1)
 60
The great speaker of all in speech
The brave of the Bakopa,
The late Oliver Kgadime Matsepe

The famous writer is not 1i tera 11 y a great 1ion but the

meaning is figurative in the sense that he is compared with
the overwhelming animal in order to indicate his strength.
His strength refers to the knowledge applied to his literary
work. He wrote novels and poetry.

Pretorius (1989:36) states that metaphor is used in modern

poetry to represent objects, thought or ideas. The ladies are
compared to flowers:

Kgarebe tsa lefase lena ke matsoba

(Seipone .... 4)
The young women of this world are flowers.

The green landscape is used metaphorically to refer to peace.

Metaphorical language is heavily used in Puleng's poetry:

Ke sesiro sa kgopolo tse lotilwego

(Seipone .... 40)
He is the preserver of noble ideas.

The images brought about by the lid covering the mind reveals
disturbance of the mind. The poet describes that madness is
an imbalance in one's life.
 61
Puleng's poem ' Bogafa ' (p.40) is full of metaphor:

Ke tsela basepedi ba yona ba sepela ka lehahanke

Ke senotlelo sa diphiri tse hunetswego ke tlhago,
Ke lefase l a botimedi le aparetswe ke
leswiswi la nkata,
Ke madimabe ga a hlapse ka mahlo ke bone
ga ke botswe,
Ke lehu l a bobedi la bophelo kgati e
bohlokoh l oko
Ke Tshemo ya bolebadi go yona
dimela ga di mele,
Ke ntho ya maikutlo swao la botimed i
bophelong .
(Seipone .... 41)
It is the way, pedestrians walk sparingly,
It is the key of secrets bound by nature,
It is the world of the lost covered by
heavy darkness,
It is misfortune that cannot be washed away,
through the eyes I have seen and cannot be told,
It is the second death of life, the painful l ash
It is the field of forgetfulness wherein the seeds
do not grow .
It is a sore of feel i ngs, the sign of being lost in
1i fe .

Ideas are used where madness is a way of the people walking

as if they are l ost. And the key of secrets i mplies that the
cause is not known . Walking in darkness bring out images that
there is no li gh t thus visible direction due to darkness.
Misfortune, deat h, a field of forgetfulness and sore feelings
bring to the reader images of suffering in relation to the
mind.

Ntuli (1978 : 190) regarded some idiomatic expressions and dead

 62
metaphors because they are already part of everyday language:

Ke lenaba le legolo leo le ka hlomolago bophelo

(Ditlalemeso: 51)
It is the great enemy which can destroy life.

These words are us ua ll y used when sympathising with the

mourners. Such words are used in order not to hurt but to
share the sorrow. Their effectiveness has been reduced
because they have become part of the everyday idiomatic
language.

In metaphor, something known is compared with something

unknown. It is an instrument in the development of a language
of ideas. Attention is properly focused on two distinct
objects having some particular area in common:

Puku yekhwi ke Seipone

(Sespone ...... :54)
This book is the mirror.

Images portrays through the book reflect something from the

poem.

Grabe (1986:3) in relation to nouns in the frame. The noun

in the frame may be described as an argument thus subject or
 63
object and modified or qualified by a focus.

Metaphor is usually more effective than a simile. In the next

section, a treatment of simile shall be provided.

4.2 SIMILE
In simile, comparison is explained by the word 'as' or
'like'. It grammatically sets two things side by side and
tells us that they are alike.

According to Scheiber (1969:43)a poetic simile which does not

more than this has failed and succeeded only if its impact
upon the imagination is that of a metaphor.

Pre tori us (1989: 37) regards simi 1e as a comparison made

between two things which may differ in all respects except
for one specific characteristic which they have in common as
marked by a figurative meaning. A simile in Northern Sotho
is identified also by a comparative element which separates
the two aspects which are compared:

Bojakane komathopa;
Bjalo ka bana,
Bana ba badumedi
(Sefahlego ... 40)
 64
Chr istianity winning treatment,
Like the children
Children of Christians.

The man ' s bel i ef is compared to children's faith. He further

said:

Ka gola ke letilwe,
Ke letilwe bjalo ka semelampsha (p41)
I grew up while being awaited for,
Being awaited for like a new seed.

The poet ' s progress is compared to a new seed which has been
planted and is growing well. It is admired because of its
young and tenderness. The kind of love he experiences is also
compared to a mountain because of its greatness:

La nona lerato la ka,

Lerato la ka la bophelo,
Le feta le dithaba (p.41)
My love is enriched
My love of life,
It's greater than the mountains.

Images of love greater than mountains signify peace of mind

and happiness.

Pretorius (1989:39) shows how the poet is chanting in praise

of his beloved one:
 65
Ke bone mahlo a etsago a namane
(Seipone ... 26)
I saw the eyes like those of a calf.

The gleam of the beloved ' s eyes is compared to the gleam of

a calf's eyes. The poet's expression of beauty is focused on
the bright eyes:

Botse bjago bo phala bja ngwedi (p.27)

Your beauty surpasses that of the moon.

Simile used here expressed love. The poet descrbi es the

beauty of the beloved one by comparing it with the moon.
Images portrayed about the moon imply the superiority of the
pet's beloved one:

0 lekanwe ke kgare ya bogosigadi

Gobane o mohlomphegigadi - o nathile (27)
You are fit to have a princess' royal crown,
For you are an honourable lady, you are well built!

The poet's beloved one is of royal descent and she is like

a glass coronet which is placed on the head of a person who
is carrying something. The plated ring represents a crown and
the royal status of the beloved one is compared to the royal
value of a crown. The verb 'nathile', is usually for fresh
animals. Thus the poet's simile brings images of beauty:
 66
0 be bjalo ka leseka mo tsogong la ka
(Seipone .. . 27)
Be like a bangle on my wrist.

The bangle makes the arm beautiful and attractive. The poet's
love stresses the special qualities of his beloved one and
to be closer since an arm cannot be separate from the body.
It shows that they are part of each other, thus inseparable
and interdependent, according to the poem is the man and his
wife.

Puleng's poem ' Puka yekhwi' from Seipone sa Madimabe pp. 54-
55 is full of simile:

Ke Tshitadingaka
It is the doctor defeater

Ke Kutollo
It is the Revelation

Ke lehumo tshemo
It is the rich field

Simile is used to explain fully the kind of book which is

different from other books. Simile used here expresses
religious truth.
 67

He has made an extensive use of simile to show the uniqueness

of the Bible as compared to other normal books. Further on
the contents thereof proves information related to all
circumstances of life. The reader will gain a l ot from the
Bible as it is compared to a rich field and the reader is
compared to the farmer. The information gained is compared
to the fruits reaped.

Through simile, the poet tried to make meaningful

communicatio n of difficult concepts to their audience. The
poet demonstrated his ability in putting his originality
behind this figure of speech.

4.3 PERSONIFICATION
Pretorius (1989 :42) describes personificat i on as a type of
image which gives human qualities to inanimate objects.
Personificat ion is inherently part of traditional praise
poems about birds and animals in Northern Sotho. The strategy
of ascribing human characteristics to an animal is to adapt
the animal ' s name to correspond with the name of a person:

Re dithellenyane rea thedimoga

(Direti tse nne:35)
We are small slippers, we slip.
 68
The poet describes the culture of Puleng and that his
grandfather sl ip ped through Limpopo:

Bathobakwena Baroka ba meetse a pula.

People of the Crocodile of "Baroka " of the rainy water.

Puleng used t he praise name crocodile.

Vilakazi (1984:178) regarded the bird's upward flight as

sometimes used to symbolise achievement of success:

Nkopeleleng nonyana tsa phelo bja ka;

(Sefahlego .. . :31)
Sing for me the birds of my life;

The poet addressed the birds as if they are people who will
respond. Images given here are of freedom because the birds
fly as they p1ease in the empty sky. As they sing they
signify man ' s rise in his sphere of education:

Mogopolo wa ka o tshela mawatle (p.31).

My mind crosses the seas.

Symbo 1ism is a 1so used through the 'crossing of the sea;

since it implies acquiring knowledge.

Le mphelelegetseng ka tlhompho (p.31)

Accompany me in dignity .
 69
The birds are addressed as if they have human qualities.

Puling used various animals in personification :

Sib i , ga ke tsebe;
Ge e ka ba l ehono
Ke swanetse go go bitsa
Mogwera goba ngwanaka.
(Kgaa Kgati ... :15)
Sibi, I don ' t know;
If today
I should ca ll you
A friend or my child

The poet's expression of calling the dog, Sibi a friend or

child implies that he loved that dog. the poet communicates
with it as if it is a human being.

According to Ntuli (1984:171), Vilakazi likes to address

various objects as if they were human beings capab 1e of
hearing and understanding what he tells them. This form of
approach called personification is evident in Puleng's
poetry:

Le wena mobu lehono ke a go sola

Gobane go wena go belegwa molete
Wo o setsego o meditse ba mohola.
(Titlalemeso ... :52)
Soil, today I blame you
Because in you the grave is born
It has become the blanket of the dead.
 70
The poet blames t he soil because the useful peop l e are buried
under the so il. The soil is addressed as i f i t i s having the
human faculty of understanding but does not reply. He even
asks a quest i on:

Re tla tseba kang gore o khose (p . 52 ) ?

How wil l we know that you are full?

Images portrayed by the question to the soil show that the

poet's wish i s that the hole should be closed. Since people
are buried i n a grave, the poet wants to know when will that
stop.

Personificat i on offers an interesting variety in the poet's

expression. Pu l eng achieves that especial ly through asking
questions:

0 rutilwe ke mang sehlogo se sekaaka.

Wena mohlokalesoko, kgaugelo le monamoledi?
(Ditlalemeso:51)
Who taught you such cruelty
You without mercy and defender?

The cruelty of death is questioned since it has no mercy.

death comes at any time irrespective of age and
circumstances. Young healthy children die while old sickly
people live l onger. Small children also become orphans with
no one to care for them.
 71
Person i fica t ion i s interest ing s i nee other ere a tures and
objects are made to events for the apprec i ation of poetry.

4.4 SYMBOLISM
Wheeler (1966 : 182) regarded symbolism as a way of thinking
with things.

Pretori us ( 1989: 44) notes that the word symbo 1 is derived

from the Greek work Symballein- to throw together, and its
own symbol on, - mark, emblem, token or sign. A literary
symbol comb ines an image with a concept . The figurative
meaning is applicable since one object i s automatically
associated with the other:

Vena ka nosi ke modisi wa gago o ka se hloke selo,

0 tlo go hutamisa mafulong a matala a go lapolosa moya .
(Ditlalemeso:59)
He, himself is your shepherd, You will not want
of anything you need,
He will make you lie down in green pastures
that restoreth the soul .

The shepherd symbolises care. The poem is about the king who
is taken care of by God. God provides him with what he
needs. Some words have symbolic meanings in specific poetic
context.
 72
Images assoc i a ted with peace of mind, 1yi ng down in green
pastures symbolises rest on a green place . A green colour
is brigh t and usua l ly symbolises life . The world becomes
bright and beautiful because the grass is green . The poet
further on said :

0 apere l esed i bjalo ka kobo, o a rena, o a busa

Phadi mo l e letago di go aparetse. Mellwane o theile
(Ditlal emeso :59)
You are wearing ligh t like a dress, you are leading,
you are ruling .
Shin ing and brightness are upon you, boundaries
you have mad e.

The light worn by the kind symbol i ses success in his

leadership or ru 1ers hip, authority or power. Images of
something bright also reveals happiness in one .

Wheeler (1966:184) noted that some symbols are formed by the

process of synecd oc he, by taking a part of something and
using it to stand for the whole as light stands for
understand ing or success:

Ke lewatle la dihlalefi l e dinyepolod i;

Ke lefase l a dibadi, dingwadi le diret i ,
Ke morit i wa ba dutsego tsatsing
Ke senot l el o sa bao ba lego dikgolegong.
(Ditl alemeso:17)
 73
It is the sea of the wise and researchers.
It is the world of the readers, authors and poets,
It is the shadow of those basking in the sun,
It is the key to those who are in jail.

The sea and the world are natural symbo ls and the visible
surface of nature is eloquent. People who read and write
literature have reference to the Bible. The water in the sea
symbolise the flow of ideas in one ' s mind. The existence of
the water implies the continuous flow of ideas giving rise
to a series of visions.

Images portrayed by these statements refer to the Bible as

light in life, it gives direction even to the people in jail.
That the Bible is a shadow implies that one becomes
strengthened when reading the word of God. The shadow gives
God's presence in a different form.

The symbolic meaning of the key to the persecutors shows that

there is a way to follow since the purpose of the key is to
unlock. Even in the Bible it is written that Jesus is the
way, the truth and life.

The hidden reality is revealed through symbolism. symbolism

is also realised through our individual backgrounds and
inclinations.
 74
Metaphors, similes and symbols are related in the fact that
they a 11 have an ana 1og i ca 1 function. The poet's Bib 1i ca 1
references reveal his Christi an bel i ef in God. He is highly
influenced by the Bibl e and regards God as the Creator and
Almighty .

From Fogle (1962:22-23), Ntu li deduced that poetic imagery

is to be defined broadly as analogy or comparison, having a
special force and ident ity from the peculiarl y aesthetic and
concentrat ive form of poetry. It is to be judged according
to its creat ive power, t he connotative richness of its
content and t he harmonious unity as we 11 as fusion of its
elements.
 75
5. FORM OF POETRY
Since poetry i s regarded as a way of using language, a form
of speech, a mode of expression or a patterning of words;
I will concentrate on a patterned communication in the poetry
of Puleng.

5.1 PARALLELISM
Parallelism refers to similarity between two parts or members
of a sentence whose words corresponds to one another.

Leech (1969:67) refers to linguistic parallelism as very

often connected with rhetorical emphasis and memorability.
Language allows for a great abundance of types of lexical and
grammatical repetition. Every parallelism involves
appreciating some external connection between the elements
which is broadly speaking a connection either of similarity
or of contrast.

Pretorius (1989:18) says that parallelism in poetry can be

described as 1i ngu is tic simi 1a ri ties observed between certain
successive poet i c lines. The regular rhythmic condition is
caused by the repet i tion of the same words or phrases in a
single line or successive lines. The repetition of the
rhythmic pattern found in the poem:
 76
Ntlolerole ga a amuse leago,
Ntolerole ga a amuse peakanyo,
Ntlolerole ga e amuse lerato,
Ntlolerole ga e amuse khutso,
Yona ka boyona ke nyepo ya lehu.
(Kgaa Kgati ... :3)
A dusty house does not produce neighbourhood,
A dusty house does not produce arrangement,
A dusty house does not produce love,
A dusty house does not produce peace,
It is, itself the cause of death.

The regular rhythmic pattern is brought about by the same

phrase. 'Ntlolerole ga e amuse' which is repeated in
successive lines. 'Yona ' to show emphasis, is repeated in
the last line.

Pretorius (1989:19) Parallelism may contribute to the

restatement of central accompanies by a gradual release of
new information which causes an epic flow or introduces
striking descriptions.

Lefase sele lona lea mmakatsa ke thetebudi;

Lefase lekhwi ke lefase mang fase la dikgotsiso
(Seipone ... :37)
Here is the earth, it surprises me it is round;
This earth, what kind of earth it is of suspense?

Emphasis is placed on the 'earth' giving various expressions

about the events which are taking place on earth.

In the poetry of Puleng there are instances of simple

 77
repetitive parallelism. One unit i n the first member is
repeated in the second member and also the third member.

Lefase lekhwi ke lefase mang fase la dikgotsiso? (p.37)

'Lefase', the earth is repeated three times.

Parallel ism is employed for aesthetic purposes in traditional

and modern poetry. It also provides a recurrence which is
of paramount influence in contributing to rhythm.

Parallelism provides for other devices such as alliteration

and linking.

Peck and Coyle (1984:17) consider alliteration as repetition

of the same consonant or vowel sound within a syntactic unit
or line:

Ntlolerole ga e amuse leago

Ntlorero le ga e amuse peakanyo
(Kgaa Kgati ... :13)

5.2 LINKING
Linking refers to the repetition of an item that could be a
morpheme or a word usually in adjacent or successive lines.

In the poetry of Puleng there are vertical linking,

horizontal line repetition, oblique line repetition and
cross-linking.
 78
5.2.1 VERTICAL LINKING
Pretorius (1989:19) stated that when initial words, parts of
words or phrases of two successive lines of poetry are marked
by a linguistic correspondence, we refer to such repetition
technique as i nitial linking:

Lefase sele lona lea mmakatsa ke thetebudi;

Lefase lekhwi ke lefase mang fase la dikgotsiso?
(Seipone ... :37)
Here is the earth, it surprises me it is round;
This earth, what kind of earth it is of suspense?

The word 'Lefase' is repeated in its initial position again

in the second line . It embodies an extension of the idea
found in the first line.

Synonyms can also be used instead of repeating the actual

word or phrase in sentences:

Ke a obelela, ke a phopholetsa, ke a phohlomela,

Ga ke sware motho, ga ke sware selo, ke swara lefela.
(Seipone ... :37)
I am reaching, I am feeling, I am falling in,
I do not hold anybody, I do not hold anything,
I hold emptiness.

Pul eng used the phrases for reaching the earth which he
cannot by varying such phrases as: 'I am falling in, I do
not hold anything etc.
 79
Initial linking takes place as by a correspondence of
subjective morphemes at the beginning of successive lines:

0 sepela gare ga mekgotha

0 sa kwe difatanaga
0 supa 0 iphetola 0 nnosi
(Se i pone ... : 67)
He is walki ng i n the middle of the streets
He does not hear cars
He is poi nting and replying himself alone.

There's initial linking caused by 'Q', the subject concord

at the beginning of the three sentences, verbs starting with
·~·. The sentences in the second verse all start ' Le', thus
initial linking.

When linking takes place as the last words or parts of words

of successive lines of poetry showing some form of linguistic
correspondence there is final linking:

Ge ba gopola ka wona ba bona masiwana a mahloko,

Ka moka ba o fetogetse manaba ka baka la mahloko.
(Seipone . .. :29)
When thinking about them, they see misery of sorrow,
All turned against you as enemies because of sorrow.

The repetition of sorrow 'mahloko' appears at the end. The

final linking is also marked by a vertical line repetition
pattern as in the case of initial linking.
 80
5 . 2.2 HORIZONTAL LINE REPETITION PATTERN
Hor i zonta l lin e repetiti on pat tern i s repetition occurring
i n a s i ng le line such as

a b c a b c d

0 t lo go rosa 0 tlo gor os a mrnasebotsana,

(Seipone .. . :24)

Yo u wil l wed, you will wed t he beauty

queen.

The repe ti tion has a s c h ematic repr esentation of :

a b c a b c d

Horizontal rel at i onsh i p of lines are sa id to be parallel

carrying t he s ame images .

5.2.3 OBLIQUE LINE REPETITION PATTERN

Oblique l ine repetiti on refers to one part of a poet i c l ine
which is repea t ed in the next l i ne and occ upi es a di fferent
syntactic pos i t i on in t he l at ter li ne. It i s represented
with lines havin g a slant from one side to t he ot her:

At l a t sa ka di f etoga diteba l ebi swiswi ng l a nk ata

Swi s i ng l ekhwi hleng nke go bipilwe tsebo?
(Seipone .. . : 37)
 81
My hands turn to be the light in a heavy darkness,
This darkness, why is it as if knowledge is covered?

The repetition represents a right-left swing pattern.

A left to right repetition pattern can be presented as:

Mahlong a kgosi o ngwala nnete,

Ke tlo ithekga ka wena kgosi ya ka,
(Sefahlego ... :34)

In the eyes of the king, you write the truth,

I will lean against you my king.

5.2.4 CROSS-LINKING
When the lines joining the two words that line from a cross;
then it is a cross-linking pattern :

A hleng mabati akhwi a kgakilwe ka boitapiso

Mabati akhwi hleng a bitolla mphodibipsa,
(Sefaahlego ... :SO)
Why are these doors decorated through hardship,
Why are these doors revealing gifts covered.
Cross-linking helps in emphasising certain points.

Linking gives an interesting pattern to poetry by

contributing towards rhythm through the recurrence of the
same units.
 82
5.3 REFRAIN
Refrain refers to a line or lines that are regularly repeated
at similar positions in all the stanzas of a poem, with
little or no var i at ion at al l :

Re lebala gore re bafet i mono lefase ng l eno,

Re lebala gore pele re yago re il e go di arabela,
Re l eba la gore leeto la mokreste le thongwa lefaseng
(Ditlaafemeso:40)
We forget that we are passersby in this world,
We forget that where we are going we are to be
answerable
We forget that the journey of a Chri st i an start on
earth.

Puleng achieved vari ation through the use of different words.

Pretori us ( 1989 :2 1) stated that refrain in modern Sotho

poetry is often used to add lyrical characteristi cs to the
poem or to emph asize a specific idea:

Yena yola mokokotlo wa pelo ya gQgQ,

Lona lesedi la nao tsa gQgQ mphatlalatsane,
Yena yola l esapo la masapo a gggQ,
Yena yola seswantshi sa bophelo bja gQgQ,
Yena moriti wa gggQ, le meetse ~,
(Ditlalemoesi:43)
He the backbone of your heart,
The light of your feet, the morning star,
He the bone of your bones,
He the picture of your life
He your shadow and your water.

The possess i on your, I gago I is emphasized in a 11 1i nes.

 83
5.4 RHYME
Rhyme is defined as the most obvious aural aspect of poetry
which contributes much of mus i ca 1 qua 1i ty to the verse.
Rhyme genera lly refers to a similarity in the sounds of words
or syllab les.

It de a 1s with the wound pattern in poetry, influence the

direction that a poem takes and implies agreement of sound .
Rhyme is sometimes achieved by repeating formatives, stems
and words:

Re Tshaba boganka
Re Tshaba ntwa tsa kgaphamadi.
(Sefah 1ego ... :55)
We fear arrogance,
We fear the battle of bloodflow.

How the poet used the statement of fear is emphasized.

Rhyme punctuates the rhythmic structure of the poem with

words that echo one another binding 1i nes together into
longer units of composition.

Ntuli (1976:241) stated that rhyme has a regulating effect

and indicated audibly that we have come to the end of a
verse. Similar syllables arranged in succession form an
interesting pattern:
 84
Ke eya tlase le tletlolo,
Ke phonyokga dikgadima,
~ nyaka thar i ,
Ke hloka boroko.
(Sefahlego ... :53)
Going up and down
I succeed through lightening,
I am looking for children
I do not sleep.

The repetition of the subject concord 'Ke' leads to initial

rhyme which sounds very pleasant to the ear:

Ka tsinkela:
A ntlhabela.
A ntikelela .
(Sefahlego . .. :42)
I kept on,
It rises for me,
It surrounds me.

Rhyme by the final syllable is achieved by repeating only the

last syllable:

Tseleng tse thata tsa bophflQ

A nkhupetsa ka kobo 'a thapflQ
(Sefahlego . .. :43)
In the difficult ways of life
He covered me with a blanket of prayer.

The same syllables at the end are then referred to as end

rhyme.

Today rhyme is more than a mere ornament or device as it

pe r forms ce r t a i n va1ua b1e f unc t i on s and a f fords p1e as ur e
 85
through the sense impression it makes as well as serving to
unify and distinguish divisions of the poem.

5.5 RHYTHM
According to Reeves (1965:113) rhythm comes from a greek word
meaning 'flow'. 'Flow' means the movement from one point to
another. Rhythm is the pulse of poetry.

The presence of rhythm in a poem is the first essent i a 1

characteristic of poetry. Words have their own rhythms.
These are determined partly by the stresses we always place
on certain syllabl es:

Ga ke sware motho, ga ke sware selo ke

swara lefela,
(Sei pone ... : 37)
I do not hold anybody, I do not hold
anything, I hold emptiness.

The rhythm of poetry is marked by a degree of regularity far

surpassing that of prose.

The purpose of rhythm is to prolong the moment of

contemplation, the moment when we are both asleep and awake
which is the one moment of creation .
 86
In the making and in the understanding of a work of art and
the more easily if it is full of patterns and symbols and
music then we are lured to the threshold of sleep and it may
be far beyond it . Rhythm through sentence movement differs
from emphatic stress.

5.5.1 SENTENCE MOVEMENT

Rhythm is i nvo 1ved in the experience and expression of
emotion.

Brooks and Warren (1976:1) stated that emotional expression

is an essential element of poetry that rhythm is a natural
and not an artificial aspect of poetry and an indication of
the relation of poetry to the common experience of life.

E be o bone botho le botswea bja ka,

E be o bone tsohle tsa ka!
(Dithlalemeso:32)
That you have seen my human kindness and
stubbornness,
That you have seen all about me!

By ca refu 1 cont ro 1 of the 1ength of phrases within the

sentence or the length of sentences within the larger unit
of paragraph or stanza. The writer can create various
rhythmic effects which will evoke particular responses in the
reader or listener.
 87
Language as well as rhythm contributes to stimulating poems.
Rhythm is an important factor in Northern Sotho poetry. In
poetry rhythm reinforces emotions and helps to convey to the
reader the writer ' s attitude, feelings and thought.

5.5.2 EMPHATIC STRESS

Emphat ic stress is another kind of stress which we lay on
whole words within the prase or sentences. The stress shifts
to different words according to the tone of the voice the
speaker wishes to convey and to the meaning he wants them to
carry:

Ke be ke sireleditswe,
Ke sireleditswe,
Ke sireleditswe ditimo,
Ke sireleditswe difako.
(Sefahlego ... :39
I was protected,
Being protected,
I was protected from staggering
I was protected over arms.

The first phrase emphasizes a verb 'protected ' while the

second one stresses the poet. Being protected from
staggering refers to how he was taken care of in baby talk.
The last phrase refers to physical care of the child.
 88
The movement of the emphatic stress radically alters our
response to what is said. The falling of both syllable and
emphatic stresses helps to create the rhythms of the
language.
 89

CONCLUSION
Poems based on the great un i versa 1 themes can be found
anywhere in the world . Examples of such themes are love,
hate, birth, youth, p1ea for mercy and growth of se 1f-
awareness :

Mpatamele wena ngeloi la maoto a ka,

Robala hubeng sa ka o ruthofale;
Bona dinaledi sebakabakeng sa legodimo,
Di bina kosa yeo nna le wena re e hlaelelago.
(Ditlalemeso: 3)
Come closer angel of my feet,
Lie on my chest and feel warm;
See the stars high up in the sky,
They are singing the song we desire,

There are expressions of love and admiration in the poet's

use of images. The growth of self-awareness through the
following lines inquires about different characters and one's
way in life:

Goban eng tseleng ya bophelo mabati ke a mantsi,

Mangwe a kgahla monna masemong a lebale gae,
Mangwe a utswa mosadi pelo a ikhwetsa e le monna
(Sefahlego . . . :50)
Why are these many doors in the paths of li fe,
Others p1eases man in the fie 1d that he forgets his
home,
Others stea l the woman ' s heart that he finds herself as
a man.

The vario us sentences of the artist's expression combine

according to meaning and result in a definite construction
 90
unified by a common theme.

Puleng's poetry has interesting themes due to their

meaningful poetic language.
 91

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