Save Our Sons

S.O.S (Save Our Sons)

Written by: Benjamin Zephaniah

From Propa Propaganda

Elements Of Poetry

We Black men of England

Too proud to cry for shame,

Let's cry a sea

Cry publicly,

Expose our very pain,

For Babylon the bandit

Is on our sisters trail,

The bad talk

And the cool walk

Will not keep us out of jail.

We Black men of England

Our guns are killing us,

How dare we?

Now hear me

How great is dangerous?

There's a fascist and a druggist

Out to get our kith and kin,

Let silent guns

Save our sons

The power is within.

We Black men of England

Excel as if in sport

For our people,

Because some people

Want to see our face in court,

When we Black men of England

Look the mirror in the face,

Through our sisters eyes

We men shall rise

As proud sons of our race.

WORD SOUNDS

By: Taafulisia Ualotu

Save Our Sons displays two sound plays, which is the emphasis on individual sounds and words.

Assonance: the repetition of vowel sounds anywhere in the middle or end of a line or stanza. (Line 2: Too proud to cry for shame)

Also Repetition: the repetition of entire lines or phrases to emphasize key thematic ideas. ( Lines 1, 11, 21, and 25: We Black men of England)

Dr Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah

• Dr. Zephaniah was born and raised in Birmingham, England.
• He had finished full time education at the age of 13.
• His poetry is strongly influenced by the music and poetry of Jamaica and what he calls ‘street politics’.
• At the age of 22 he headed south to London where his first book Pen Rhythm was published by Page One Books.
• In the early Eighties Zephaniah’s poetry could be heard at demonstrations, at youth gatherings, and outside police stations.
• Over a 22-day period in 1991 he performed on every continent on this planet.
• He has sixteen honorary doctorates and the Eailing Hospital in west London has named a wing after him in recognition of his work.

Structure in S.O.S

Sound Patterns

Poem Structure: A type of form or structure in poetry characterized by regularity and consistency in such elements as rhyme, line length, and metrical pattern.

Structure in Save Our Sons

• first stanza = Octave (8 lines)
• second stanza = couplet (2 lines)
• third stanza = Cinquian (5 lines)
• fourth stanza = Cinquin (5 lines)
• fifth stanza = Couplet (2 lines)
• sixth stanza = Octave (8 lines)
• In Total S.O.S has 30 lines

S.O.S is a Descriptive poem.

The poem describes the world that surrounds the speaker.

Rhyme is the repetition of similar sounds. The Rhyme Scheme of Save Our Sons is the following:

1st Stanza = A,B, C, C, B, D, E, F

2nd Stanza = F , E

3rd Stanza = A, G, C, C, G

4th Stanza = H, I, J, J, I

5th stanza = A, K

6th Stanza = L, L, M, A, N, O, O, N

Thank You!

References/ Cites

"Benjamin Zephaniah - Benjamin Zephaniah Is a Poet, Writer, Lyricist, Musician and Trouble Maker." <i>Benjamin Zephaniah</i>. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2015.

"Elements of Poetry." Elements of Poetry. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.

Hunter, Benjamin Zephaniah - Poem. "Sos (Save Our Sons) Poem." Poemhunter.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2015.

FIGURATIVE DEVICES

Metonymy a form of metaphor allowing an object closely associated (but unattached) with a object or situation to stand for the thing itself. ( We black men of England = African Americans

A symbol is like a simile or metaphor with the first term left out. ( Let silent guns =Knowledge )

Personification occurs when you treat abstractions or inanimate objects as human, that is, giving them human attributes, powers, or feelings. ( Look the mirror in the face)