Eat More by Joe Corrie – Analysis & Summary
Anthology Title: Selected Poems
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Anthology Editor/Compiler: Tanzania Institute of Education Poem Title: Eat More
Poet: Joe (Joseph) Corrie
Setting: Universal
Year of Publication (Anthology): 1996
Publisher: Tanzania Institute of Education
Eat More by by Joe Corrie (Scotland)
’Eat more fruit!’ the slogans say,
’ More fish, more beef, more bread!’
But I’m on Unemployment pay
My third year now, and wed.
And so I wonder when I’ll see
The slogan when I pass,
The only one that would suit me, –
’ Eat More Bloody Grass!’
This poetry anthology is compiled and edited by the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) which is a Governmental Organization under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. It’s the responsibility is to ensure the provision of quality of education in Tanzania in pre-school, primary, secondary and teacher training levels.
TITLE. The title of this poetry anthology is ‘Selected Poems’. It is a simple and direct title that reflects the truth that the ‘selected poems’ in this anthology have been taken from various sources of literature in Africa and beyond so as to serve the need of poetry experience and appreciation for students and teachers.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE ANTHOLOGY. The anthology has various poems that help and teach the Secondary School students how to appreciate the different kinds of poems. The poems in this collection touch almost every aspect of life like love, nature, politics, traditions, modernity, colonialism, neo-colonialism, freedom, poverty, and position of women to mention a few. This anthology is a collection of Tanzanian, East African, African, and World poems that teach the students the experiences about African continent and beyond.
This anthology has about 68 poems of different size, format, style, and content.
POEM ANALYSIS
About the Poet. Joe Corrie is a Scottish poet who once worked as a factory worker during the times of Chartist movement in Britain.
Title of the poem. The title of the poem is ironical and it reflects the contents of the poem as well.
Brief Summary/Paraphrase of the poem. The poem is about a man who protests against the commercial slogans which keep on advertising foods especially balanced diet that he cannot afford to buy because he is unemployed. He thinks the government is being hypocritical because it advertises the slogans that do not suit him.
The persona. The persona of the poem is an unemployed man who suffers from poverty due to the fact that he cannot afford the expenses of eating balanced diets and other basic needs.
The addressee. The addressee of the poem is any society which experiences the poor life and unemployment because of the indifference of the government in creating the employment opportunities.
Tone. This is the general attitude of the poet expresses towards the subject of the poem and readers of the poem. The tone of the poet in this poem is angry, satirical, and sad.
Mood. Mood is the mental and emotional nature, composure or attitude of the poet towards the subject matter. The mood of this poem is sadness, anger, unhappiness, and satire.
Structure of the poem. The poem is divided into two stanzas with each stanza having four verses.
Kind of the poem. The type of the poem is lyrical because it is short and it expressed strong feelings of the person about the slogan and the government.
Sound devices. The poem has several sound devices. They are:
Rhythm. The poem has a rhythm because it comprises of patterns of stressed and unstressed syllables.
Rhyme scheme. The poem has regular rhyming patterns. This is because the poem has a rhyme scheme of “ab/ab”. Hence it creates the rhythm of the poem. For example:
And so I wonder when I’ll see – a
The slogan when I pass, – b
The only one that would suit me, – a
Eat more bloody grass – b
Alliteration. The poem also employs alliteration. For example, “More, fish, more beef, more bread”. In this line there is a repetition of the sound ‘m’ at the beginning of some words in the line.
Assonance. Also this sound device has been used. For example, “More, fish, more beef, more bread”. In this line, there is the repetition of the sound ‘o’ at the middle of the words.
Repetition. This is the repetition of the words, phrases, or sentences for emphasis. In the poem, the words and phrases like ‘more’ and ‘eat more’ has been repeated to emphasise the message conveyed.
Language and imagery. The poet has used as simple language and his choice of words has helped to maintain the rhyme scheme. His choice of words reflects hopeless situation and anger. For examples, “But I’m on an unemployment pay/my third year now and we” and “Eat more bloody grass!” The poet has also applied the following figures of speech:
Personification. For example, “The slogan says”.
Satire. For example, “Eat more bloody grass”.
Imagery. For example, “Eat more bloody grass”.
Themes
The possible themes of the poem, “Eat More” are:
Poverty. The poet portrays poverty in the poem especially when the man in the poem complains that he is unemployed. In the last stanza, the poet shows how poor is the persona and he is desperate.
Unemployment. In this society also there is unemployment. The man in the poem complains how unemployed and married are. So he cannot afford the expenses of life. In the first stanza, the poet has portrayed how joblessness denies people of various basic needs.
Classes. The man speaking in the poem is from a low class. Thus, the high class people enjoy the national cake while the others suffer.
Exploitation. This desperate situation the man is having is because there are others in the society that exploits other people. So, this exploitation of others leads to the hardships of life.
Oppression. The leaders in power are oppressing people. At one time they encourage people to eat the balanced diet, but at another they do not give them jobs.
Protest. The man in the poem is complaining about the situation of joblessness and life hardships he faces. He then protests against the hypocrisy of the government.
Hypocrisy. The poet shows that the government is hypocritical in the sense that it encourages its people to do the things it believes they can’t do because they are unemployed or they have no reliable sources of income.
Disillusionment. The persona complains a lot about the situation and the hypocrisy of the government. These things make him disillusioned (lose hope/become hopeless) although he was once a hopeful one, and now he has lost all those hopes he used to have.
Awareness. The persona is portrayed by the poet as one who is aware despite the circumstances he had undergone. The fact that the man is complaining shows that he has become aware of the vices of the system.
Corruption. The poem also discusses corruption. The government is corrupt because it is the only corrupt government that fails to provide the basic requirements to its people.
Irresponsibility. The poet shows that the government and the leaders in particular are not responsible to the people. It seems that the leaders are taking care of themselves, while forgetting the common people.
Selfishness. In this poem, the poet has also depicted how the people in government are selfish. He shows that they show no humility or responsibility to the people, instead they only care for themselves.
Message of the poem. The message of the poem is that the presence of unemployment, classes, exploitation, and irresponsibility in the societies has various impacts to the people. And when these are dominant people become desperate and they lose all hopes they once had before for their leaders or government.
Lesson/teachings of the poem. The lesson we can learn from the poem is that we should work hard to get a balanced diet and the government should make sure that its people are employed or self-employed so as they can get their basic needs.
Relevance of the poem. The poem is relevant to our society because in our country there are poor and unemployed people but the government keeps on insisting on eating balanced diets and having basic needs. Even the employed ones have salaries that do not help them to afford the expenses of life. Thus, the poem is relevant to the society like Tanzania.
VOCABULARY
Bloody (adv.) – (specifically used in UK) It is a slang that is considered offensive. It is used to show stress, anger or annoyance. Also in UK, it is used as a swearword to add emphasis on something For example:
What the bloody hell are you doing here? I don’t bloody care.
Suit (v) – to be appropriate to somebody or something. For example:
This jeans suit you.
This is a bloody good time!
Wed (v) – to marry somebody. For example:
I want to wed a beautiful woman. They wedded in May last year.
PRACTICE QUESTIONS
- What is the poem about?
- What is the tone of the poet?
- Comment on the rhyme scheme of the poem.
- Identify any two figures of speech and show how they help to deliver the message.
- Mention two possible themes from the poem.
- Suggest any two lessons the poet is trying to teach the society.
- How relevant is the poem to the society?
Reference
TIE (1996) Selected Poems, TIE, Dar es Salaam.