The poem is a reflection on the impossibility of living two different culture simultaneously. The two culture concerned here are African and European culture. The former is depicted as natural and simple while the latter is described as strange, fascinating and complex. The poet struggles to identify with a particular one but gets lost in the process. The European culture introduce strange and surprising things to Africans. Most of such things were easily rejected while a few, especially material artefacts, were enthusiastically embraced by both the commoners and the nobilities. As Aficans got more and more exposed to European ways of life through Western education, they found more aspects of it very fascinating but complicated. The poet being one of those privileged to access Western education when it was available to only very few Africans, happened to experience this uncanny fascination.
POETIC DEVICES
The following poetic devices are used by the poet in the poem.
- Simile _ line 3 and 4
- Metaphor _line 2,line 9 and line 10
- Transferred epithet – line 16
- Personification _ lines 17-18
- Alliteration lines 6,9 and 20
- Symbols: There is abundant use of symbols in the poem.
- Exaggeration _ stanza 1 and 2
THEMES
- Clash of culture
- Primal youth of the African
- Beauty of the concerto
- The decay of African civilization.
- The theme innocence
ONLINE WORK
Give a detailed account of the poem
ASSIGNMENT
- Compare and contrast ‘Piano and Drums’ with ‘Vanity’
- Discuss the poet attitude in ‘Piano and Drums’.
See also