Gabriel okaras

ONCE UPON A TIME

About the author

GABRIEL OKARA

 Gabriel Okara is a Nigerian writer. He

was born in Nigeria, in April 1921. He has been extremely successful in capturing the moods, sights and sounds of Africa. Okara also shows a concern regarding what happens when the ancient culture of Africa is faced with modern western culture, for example in his poem, 'Once Upon a Time'.

General comments
The poem is appealing to young people because it condemns the hypocrisy of adults constrained by rules and conventions-adopting masks of different occasions: for lying, cheating and betraying whereas childhood is portrayed as a time of honest laughter, of innocence and spontaneity . Also coming through in this poem is the influence of western culture on Nigerian way of life .

Once upon a time ,son, They used to laugh with their hearts And laugh with their eyes; But now they only laugh with their teeth, While their ice block cold eyes Search behind my shadows.

1.

this stanza tells of the conversation between a father and the son. They refer to the other people, which gives sinister and impersonal tone.

The father telling his son How the people or they Used to laugh with the hearts.

2.

There was a time indeed they used to shake hands with there hearts; but thats gone, son. Now they shake hands without hearts while there left hand search my empty pockets.

This shows that, again the people are fake and seems to be using the man to see what they can get.

3.

Feel at home! come again ; they say and when I come again and feel at home, once, twice, there will be no thricefor then I find doors shut on me.
twice no thrice

once

This shows that people lie when they

say the positive phrases and after a few visits they have all that they want from the man ; their falseness is reflected in the language they use.

4.
So I have learned many things son I have learned to wear many faces

Like dresses Home face

 Office face

 Street face

 Host face

Cocktail face

This represents that we wear different faces for different situation

With all their conforming smiles Like a fixed portrait smile

4. And

I have learned, too, to laugh with only my teeth and shake hands without my heart,

I have also learned to say, Good bye, when I mean Good riddance;

To say Glad to meet you without being glad; and to say its been nice talking to you, after being bored.

But belive me, son. I want to be what I used to be When I was like you . I want To unlearn all these muting things.

These muting things

These are the pressures and constraints, which makes people

behave falsely or hypocritically. So their true feelings, emotions, expressions are muted (silenced).

Most of all, I want to relearn How to laugh, for my laugh in the mirror Shows only my teeth like a snakes bare fangs !

So show me, son, How to laugh; show me how I used to laugh and smile

Once upon a time when I was

like you.

THANKING YOU
BY ABHISHEK N ROKHADE 102 B.Sc Ist sem