‘Beggar in the three a piece’ Poem

Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow.

Beggar in the three a piece.
    My Jumbo
    Shot its way
    Across the sky
    To distant lands
    Across blue seas

    I descended the ladder
    To a waiting ribbon
    Of blood-red carpet
    A quick glance at my
    Three piece suit and the tie
    That beautifully strangled my neck.

    On my left hand hang
    My beaded knob kerry
    On my right I clutched
    My rusty inter- nation Begging Bowl
    On my face I wore humility and need
    And of course dignity.

    Sir, the dearth of food
    Had rendered my people thin
    And hungry
    Scoop us a little
    You know
    Just little
    To keep them till next rains.

    But Sir, beggars
    In three piece
    Are a rare sight
    But your suit is beautiful
    Honestly.

    Now my suit
    Which cost me a fortune
    In a Parisian Texture
    Has denied me a fortune
    And my countrymen, life.
 By. L.O. Sunkuli.

Questions

(a)    Who is the persona in the poem?                                    (3 marks)
(b)    What is the subject matter of this poem?                                    (4 marks)
(c)    Explain the satire in this poem and comment on its effectiveness.                        (4 marks)
(d)    Describe the tone of this poem.                                        (3 marks)    
(e)    Explain what the last stanza implies.                                    (3 marks)
(f)    Explain the meaning of the following liens as used in the poem.                        (3 marks)
    i)    My Jumbo
        Shot its way
        Across the sky
      ii)    That beautifully strangled my neck.
     iii)    To keep them till the next rains.

Beggar in a three-piece ANSWERS

(a)     A delegate from a third world countryP who has gone to seek for funds / aid from the I.M.F, World   Bank or a developed country to alleviate famineP in  his or her country.
    “My rusty inter – Nation Begging bowl ..”P
    “The death of food … rendered my people thin.”                            (3 mks)
(b)     The poem talks about misplaced priorities usuallyexhibited by the leadership in the under developed countries.P  The leadership concentrates on how they can waste funds on expensive clothing and luxurious flightsP when in actual sense the citizens              are dying of hunger.P  The donors decline to assist because of misplaced priorities.P        (4 mks)
(c)     The leadership of under developed countries insensitivity to people’s pressing needs is satinzed. P The leaders concentrate on being on expensive flights and dressing in imported garments while the people are hungry.P
       “But sir, … ./ But your suit is beautiful / honestly.”P
       The leaders only concentrate on what benefits them at the expense of the country men; they risk death  because of extravagant leaders.P    (4 mks)
(d)     Sarcastic / Satirical / Bitter.P
    The tune is used to bring out satire on the leaders / irony of the leader’s lifes as opposed to their subjects.P
    Bitterness brings out the insensitivity of the leaders to the plights / problems of the common people.P        (3 mks)
(e)     –     The aid he / she is supposed to get would hav  been misused or embezzled by leaders.P
        “Has denied me a fortune”
       –     The countrymen are likely to die of starvation.P
        “And my countrymen, life.”
       –     Donors fell that the borrower is extravagant.P
        “In a Parisian Textile.”                                        (3 mks)
(f)    i)     He boarded a big plane that cruised at top speed.P
       ii)     Though expensively dressed, he/she feels uncomfortable about being extravagant while the countrymen suffer.P
    iii)     They entirely depend on nature for their existence.P