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sSubject/Class Paper was submitted for  [AP English lit and comp]
SSubject/Topic of paper (Please Be As Descriptive As Possible)   
a[AP English part ? essay: Re: Ogun                             ]3 Letter
Y Year of AP Exam unknown                                      Abbrev.
 [                                                              ]for
S       Grade Level (For High School Students):      9 [ ] 11 [ ]Major
u                                                   10 [ ] 12 [X]Education
B                                       (for Ont., Canada) 13 [ ]Areas,
m       Year (For University/College Students)       1 [ ]  3 [ ]MARK one:
I                                                    2 [ ]  4 [ ]
s                                                           5 [ ]English
SSchool/University/College/Institution [St. Joseph's Collegiate ][ENG] [X]
iCity & State (Province) of Inst.      [Buffalo, NY             ]History
OName of Teacher/Prof. submitted to    [Mr. Zabawa              ][HST] [ ]
nGrade Received (If Received Yet)                           [86 ]Science
 Date Paper was submitted (mm/dd/yy)   [   03/01/93             ][SCI] [ ]
FName of Author (Real or Alias)        [The Saint               ]Health &
oHigh School Avg./College GPA of Author                 [95.6   ]Sports
RIf used, Textbook/Novel/Classic Translator/Editor and Version/  [HTH] [ ]
m Edition Info [                                                ] -
 Additional Comments [                                          ]The
 [                                                              ]Information
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Paper 5: Ogun                              Due date: 03/01/93

     The author, in his poem "Ogun," organizes his memories

of his uncle into two parts joined by one transitional

section. The first section contains diction and detail which

suggest that the author is reminiscing about his uncle and a

nostalgic mood is also suggested. The second section appears

to be one in which the author considers with anger the pain

and unpleasantness his uncle had to suffer because of

society. The transitional section of lines 21-26 is a phase

in the poem in which the author appears to realize that all

the pleasant memories of he has of his uncle are only a small

part of the unpleasant reality. The author uses diction,

imagery, detail and other stylistic elements to express his

sentiments.

     The first section of the poem contains diction, detail,

and a mood which suggest that the author is revelling in

pleasant recollections. The pure fascination with which the

author views the acts of his uncle also suggests a degree of

innocence, possibly innocence caused by his consideration of

only the pleasant part of the reality. This fascination

becomes apparent in lines such as 11-12 where the author

raises his uncle to the level of a superman by saying, "there

was no shock of wood...his saw teeth couldn't handle."

Furthermore, the rapid succession of the uncle's creations

the author names, i.e. "rectangle window frames...the donkey

box-cart in its squeaking square," suggests the 'amazing'


abilities of his uncle and portrays him as a wonder. The

diction in the section such as the word 'little' in "his

little shop" suggests a degree of affection in the author's

view. This is because of the connotations of the word

'little' which suggest affection and attribute a degree of

cuteness to the object in question. Another occurrence of

words which carry connotations of cuteness and affection are

the words 'clip clop' when used to describe the uncle's

sandals. Something described as "clip clop" is attributed

cuteness and this effect of affection is further intensified

by the use of the word 'slapped' to describe how the sandals

hit the floor. The word 'slapped' carries a connotation of

something happening in a slightly comical manner, and in the

context of the "clip clop" sandals and the "knock-knee'd"

uncle 'slapped' intensifies the effect of conveying the

fondness and affection with which the author regards the

memories of his uncle. Also, the details the author includes

in the first section of the poem, details such as his uncle's

"short-sighted glasses" and how they would shine and how his

knuckles were "silvered knobs of nails" suggest the closeness

with which the author observed his uncle and this close

observation in turn suggests the author's personal closeness

with his uncle and his fascination with him. In summary, the

first section of the poem consists of the author's

fascination with his uncle and the affection with which he

remembers him.

     The second section of the poem appears to be the

author's angry portrayal of his uncle as a man who was

wronged by society. The innocence of the first section has

vanished with the realization that the reality of his uncle's

life was not just a collection of pleasant experiences,

rather his uncle suffered much because of society. The author

begins to express such sentiments with line 27 where he says

"and yet he had a block of wood that would have baffled

them." The tone in this line suggests the author's anger

towards society and his sympathy towards his uncle. The tone

i set when the author says "and yet," this suggests that his

uncle was somehow treated unfairly. also, by referring to

society as "them" the author allies himself with his uncle

and causes society to appear as a kind of villain. The

author's sympathy towards his uncle also appears through the

diction in words such as "he worked away." This phrase

suggests a slightly sympathetic and detached view of the

uncle's actions. The motif of society's injustice with the

uncle appears through the author's emphasis on his uncle's

expertise and abilities in phrases such as "(he) explored its

knotted hurts, cutting his way along its yellow whorls" where

"cutting his way" suggests that his uncle was actually

navigating through the wood as he cut. The author's anger and

his portrayal of his uncle's anger and frustration becomes

apparent through the rapid movement of the verses in the

later part of the second section and the coarse images that

are rapidly presented to the reader, images such as "dry,

shuttered eyes, slack anciently everted lips...lost pain,

lost iron." The coarseness of the images represents the

uncle's frustration and the shortness of the phrases causes

the rapid movement of the end part of the poem. This rapid

movement also suggests a building and rising tone of anger

which is neatly shaped and materialized into a sculpture in

the last line of the poem where the author describes his

uncle's piece as an "emerging woodwork image of his anger."

     Finally, it should be said that the author nostalgically

recollects the pleasant memories and details of his uncle in

the first section but in the second section he, realizing in

the transitional lines 21-26 that his uncle suffered much and

the reality was not so pleasant as his first section memories

, reflects angrily upon the unfairness with which society

treated a man he was so utterly fascinated with and fond of.

The author expresses his feelings through the use of such

elements of writing as diction and detail.
