Poetry Analysis

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City Johannesburg

Original Poetry

Translation

City Johannesburg

by Mongane Wally Serote

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Mongane Wally Serote

This way I salute you:

My hand pulses to my back trousers pocket

Or into my inner jacket pocket

For my pass, my life,

Jo’burg City.

My hand like a starved snake rears my pockets

For my thin, ever lean wallet,

While my stomach groans a friendly smile to

hunger,

Jo’burg City.

My stomach also devours coppers and papers

Don’t you know?

Jo’burg City, I salute you:

When I run out, or roar in a bus to you,

I leave behind me, my love,

My comic houses and people, my dongas and

my ever

Whirling dust,

My death

That’s so related to me as a wink to the eye.

Jo’burg City

I travel on your black and white and roboted

roads

Through your thick iron breath that you inhale

At six in the morning and exhale from five

noon.

Wild Card City is the best place for fun.

That is the time when I come to you,

When your neon flowers flaunt from your

electrical wind,

That is the time when I leave you,

When your neon flowers flaunt their way

through the

falling darkness

On your cement trees.

And as I go back, to my love, dddddddddddddd

My dongas, my dust, my people, my death,

Where death lurks in the dark like a blade in

the flesh,

I can feel your roots, anchoring your might,

my feebleness

In my flesh, in my mind, in my blood,

And everything about you says it,

That, that is all you need of me.

Jo’burg City, Johannesburg,

Listen when I tell you,

There is no fun, nothing, in it,

When you leave the women and men with such

frozen expressions,

Expressions that have tears like furrows of soil

erosion,

Jo’burg City, you are dry like death,

Jo’burg City, Johannesburg, Jo’burg City.

Explanation

In 'City Johannesburg', Mongane Wally Serote explores the complex relationship between the speaker and the city of Johannesburg, reflecting on themes of survival, identity, and socio-economic struggle. The poem opens with a salute to the city, where the speaker's hand searches for his pass, symbolizing the struggle for existence in an urban environment. The line 'My hand like a starved snake rears my pockets' evokes a vivid image of desperation, as the speaker grapples with poverty and hunger, which are personified through his stomach's groans. This establishes a tone of both affection and critique towards Johannesburg, a city that embodies both life and struggle.

As the poem progresses, the speaker describes leaving behind his 'love'—the familiar sights and sounds of his community, represented by 'comic houses and people'. The imagery of 'whirling dust' and 'my death' suggests a cyclical relationship with the city, where life and death coexist. The phrase 'Where death lurks in the dark like a blade in the flesh' starkly illustrates the dangers and harsh realities of urban life, emphasizing the constant presence of mortality amidst the vibrancy of the city.

The poem's emotional arc shifts as the speaker navigates the city’s roads, described as 'black and white and roboted', reflecting the mechanized and often impersonal nature of urban life. The mention of 'neon flowers' highlights the allure of Johannesburg, yet this allure is juxtaposed with the stark reality of 'frozen expressions' on the faces of its inhabitants, suggesting a disconnect between the city's vibrancy and the emotional desolation of its people.

Serote employs powerful metaphors and vivid imagery to convey the duality of Johannesburg as a place of both opportunity and despair. The repeated phrase 'Jo’burg City' serves as a refrain that underscores the speaker's complex feelings towards the city, encapsulating both admiration and critique. Ultimately, the poem speaks to the broader experience of urban life in post-apartheid South Africa, where the legacy of apartheid continues to shape the realities of its citizens, making it a poignant reflection on identity and survival in a challenging environment.

Word Dictionary23

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
salute	greet	to show respect or honor to someone	salute
pulses	beats	to move rhythmically or steadily	pulses
trousers	pants	a piece of clothing worn from the waist to the ankles	trousers
pass	permit	a document allowing someone to enter or travel	pass
starved	very hungry	suffering from lack of food	starved
devours	eats greedily	to consume something eagerly or ravenously	devours
coppers	coins	small, low-value coins	coppers
comic	funny	related to humor or laughter	comic
dongas	shanties	informal housing or makeshift shelters	dongas
whirling	spinning	moving rapidly in a circular motion	whirling
erosion	wearing away	the process of being gradually destroyed	erosion
frozen	cold and stiff	unable to move or change	frozen
expressions	faces	the look on someone's face that conveys emotion	expressions
furrows	grooves	long, narrow trenches or lines	furrows
dry	without moisture	lacking water or vitality	dry
might	strength	power or force	might
feebleness	weakness	lack of strength or power	feebleness
blood	fluid in the body	the red liquid that circulates in the body	blood
fun	enjoyment	activities that are enjoyable or entertaining	fun
nothing	zero	not anything; no single thing	nothing
tears	crying drops	drops of liquid that come from the eyes when someone cries	tears
like	similar to	used to compare two things	like
death	end of life	the cessation of life	death

Poet & Context

PoetMongane Wally Serote

EraContemporary South African literature, post-apartheid

Mongane Wally Serote (born 8 May 1944) is a South African poet and writer known for his political resistance against apartheid. He was arrested in 1969 and later spent years in exile before returning to South Africa in 1990.

View on Wikipedia

WhenPost-apartheid era, specific date not available

WhyThe poem reflects on the complexities of urban life in Johannesburg, particularly the struggles and resilience of its inhabitants amid socio-economic challenges.

Formfree verse

Themes & More

Themes

urban struggleidentity and belongingsocio-economic disparitylife and death

Literary devices

metaphor: comparing the city to a living entity, highlighting its impact on the speaker's lifeimagery: vivid descriptions of Johannesburg create a strong sense of place and emotionrepetition: the phrase 'Jo’burg City' emphasizes the speaker's complex feelings towards the city

Poetry Analysis

Back to poet

City Johannesburg

Original Poetry

Translation

City Johannesburg

by Mongane Wally Serote

EmailShare

Mongane Wally Serote

This way I salute you:

My hand pulses to my back trousers pocket

Or into my inner jacket pocket

For my pass, my life,

Jo’burg City.

My hand like a starved snake rears my pockets

For my thin, ever lean wallet,

While my stomach groans a friendly smile to

hunger,

Jo’burg City.

My stomach also devours coppers and papers

Don’t you know?

Jo’burg City, I salute you:

When I run out, or roar in a bus to you,

I leave behind me, my love,

My comic houses and people, my dongas and

my ever

Whirling dust,

My death

That’s so related to me as a wink to the eye.

Jo’burg City

I travel on your black and white and roboted

roads

Through your thick iron breath that you inhale

At six in the morning and exhale from five

noon.

Wild Card City is the best place for fun.

That is the time when I come to you,

When your neon flowers flaunt from your

electrical wind,

That is the time when I leave you,

When your neon flowers flaunt their way

through the

falling darkness

On your cement trees.

And as I go back, to my love, dddddddddddddd

My dongas, my dust, my people, my death,

Where death lurks in the dark like a blade in

the flesh,

I can feel your roots, anchoring your might,

my feebleness

In my flesh, in my mind, in my blood,

And everything about you says it,

That, that is all you need of me.

Jo’burg City, Johannesburg,

Listen when I tell you,

There is no fun, nothing, in it,

When you leave the women and men with such

frozen expressions,

Expressions that have tears like furrows of soil

erosion,

Jo’burg City, you are dry like death,

Jo’burg City, Johannesburg, Jo’burg City.

Explanation

Word Dictionary23

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
salute	greet	to show respect or honor to someone	salute
pulses	beats	to move rhythmically or steadily	pulses
trousers	pants	a piece of clothing worn from the waist to the ankles	trousers
pass	permit	a document allowing someone to enter or travel	pass
starved	very hungry	suffering from lack of food	starved
devours	eats greedily	to consume something eagerly or ravenously	devours
coppers	coins	small, low-value coins	coppers
comic	funny	related to humor or laughter	comic
dongas	shanties	informal housing or makeshift shelters	dongas
whirling	spinning	moving rapidly in a circular motion	whirling
erosion	wearing away	the process of being gradually destroyed	erosion
frozen	cold and stiff	unable to move or change	frozen
expressions	faces	the look on someone's face that conveys emotion	expressions
furrows	grooves	long, narrow trenches or lines	furrows
dry	without moisture	lacking water or vitality	dry
might	strength	power or force	might
feebleness	weakness	lack of strength or power	feebleness
blood	fluid in the body	the red liquid that circulates in the body	blood
fun	enjoyment	activities that are enjoyable or entertaining	fun
nothing	zero	not anything; no single thing	nothing
tears	crying drops	drops of liquid that come from the eyes when someone cries	tears
like	similar to	used to compare two things	like
death	end of life	the cessation of life	death

Poet & Context

PoetMongane Wally Serote

EraContemporary South African literature, post-apartheid

View on Wikipedia

WhenPost-apartheid era, specific date not available

WhyThe poem reflects on the complexities of urban life in Johannesburg, particularly the struggles and resilience of its inhabitants amid socio-economic challenges.

Formfree verse

Themes & More

Themes

urban struggleidentity and belongingsocio-economic disparitylife and death

Literary devices