AN ELEGY

Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow

AN ELEGY

When we were here,
We planned each tomorrow.
With him in mind.
For we saw no parting.
Looming beyond the horizon.

When he was here,
We joked and laughed together.
And no fleeting shadow of a ghost.
Ever crossed our paths.

Day by day we lived.
On this side of the mist.
And there was never a sign.
That his hours were running fast.
When he was gone.
Through glazed eyes, we searched.
Beyond the mist and the shadows.
For we couldn’t believe he was nowhere.
We could not believe he was dead.
(Laban Erapu)

questions

a) What is the poem about? (2 marks)
……………………………………………………………………. 
b) Give evidence in the poem to show that the death of the person referred to in the poem was not expected? (3 marks)
…………………………………………………………………….. 

c) Explain the relationship between the persona and the person who is now dead. (2 marks)
………………………………………………………………………….. 
d) Rewrite the following in your ow words “that his hours were running fast” (1 mark)
……………………………………………. 
e) Explain the image of the mist in the last stanza of the poem. (2 marks)
………………………………………………………………. 
f) What do you think is the importance of repeating the following line in stanza 1 & 2.
“When he was here” (2 marks)
………………………………………………………. 
g) Explain the meaning of the following line as used in the poem.

  i) We planned each tomorrow. (1 mark)
  ……………………………………………………………… 
  ii) Through glazed eyes we searched. (1 mark)
  …………………………………………………………….. 
h) “We joked and laughed together”, Rewrite in inverted form. (1 mark)
……………………………………………………………………………. 
i) Give the poem another suitable title. (1 mark)
…………………………………………………………………..  
j) Comment on the major theme in the poem. (2 marks)
…………………………………………………………….. 
k) What is the mood of the poem? (2 marks)
…………………………………………………………………………….. 

answers

• (a) The poem is about the unexpected death of a person who is part of a group of friends referred to in the poem as ‘we’ (2 marks)
• (b) No one in the group saw the possibility of his dying Illustration – we saw no parting
  No feeling shadow of a ghost ever crossed our paths. (3 marks)
• (c) Harmonious/cordial/peaceful/friendly- they joked and laughed together, and they grieved after his death. (2 marks)
• (d) His life was fast coming to an end. (1 mark)
• (e) The gloom, despair, shock, or disbelief that surrounds them after his death. (2 marks) 
• (f) To emphasize what an intimate friend the dead person was to the group. (2 marks)
• (g)
  • (i) They looked into the future together. (1 mark)
  • (ii) They suffered from grief and despair (1 mark)
• (h) Together we joked and laughed (1 mark)
• (i) Consider any relevant title (1 mark)
• (j) Death – The poem portrays death as subjecting the bereaved to loss, grief and despair. (2 marks)
• (k) Sad/sombre/melancholic – caused by the pain of losing a friend.