THROBBING POETRY IN THE FREE STATE
By Flaxman Qoopane
My felicitations to everybody here today. I guess our common, consuming love for the Arts – specifically poetry – has galvanized our presence here today. Indeed the Free State teems and throbs with countless accomplished poets, published and unpublished. My thrust today is to delineate the trends of poetry in the Free State here.
Alas my emphasis would have to be on published poets, since it is much easier to hold forth on what is already indelibly published. But let me state that I have fulsome respect for the many poets who are yet to publish definitive anthologies – the likes of Charmaine Kolwane, Raselebeli Khotseng, “Kelebone”, the intriguing Serame Makhele (smile) etc.
This is an opportunity indeed to draw attention to most of the published Free State poets, as few of us hardly know each other. Let us start by paying tribute to the late, magnificent wordsmith of a poet, Gilbert Modise. He was superb. His book of poems, An Eyesore, remains his magnum opus.
Tiisetso Makhele also stands out for his obsessive love for poetry from a very young age. He has written hundreds of poems over the years, and carted off a number of prestigious awards. A modest gentleman, he shies away from exceeding praise, but he is an impressive poet as can be seen from his book, Writings on the palm tree. Examples of his dexterity with words abound in this work, eg:
“Morning winds play guitar with the trees
Skeletons of violets warp
Duet with skies grip at pause
Sprinkles of lavish silence
Strangle their rain of life”
Speaking about dexterity with words two Mangaung poets immediately spring to mind: Job Mzamo and Teboho Mohanoe. Mzamo is a superb craftsman, churning out intelligent rhymes almost effortlessly; this is complemented by a strange sense of humour. His collection of poems, Pride of my Heart remains an inspiration.
Teboho Mohanoe also produces dazzling verses. His own collection of poems – Enter the night – is an accomplished work. I will just refer to a haunting, unforgettable line of his poetry:
“Raging glasing racing rays surface faces”
I must at this juncture also pay tribute to the great Motivator, Sipho Mnyakeni, who incidentally is also a distinguished if rather unsung poet. I was delighted to read glimpses of his brilliant poetry in his book, The Winning Combination. It is indeed a Poetry Bonus!
Sipho produces fine rhyming poems like Stop that Music, The tears of the poet, and I am a poet not a rhymist (also note intelligent ‘internal rhymes’ like the glow of your brow.). I am a poet not a rhymist, is particularly ironic and poignant. It reminds me of the understated brilliance of Sol Plaatje and Njabulo Ndebele’s terse comment on his writings:
“Tactical humility which is consciously undercut by the confident poise of language and style, and whose expressed reservations about its own merits assert the very opposite of inadequacy”
But let us move on to other poets. Let us briefly look at Mme Pulane Moiloa, grand daughter of the illustrious Dr JJ Moiloa. Pulane is still very young, but has published a collection of poems titled THREESOME. It is a promising work which reveals vignettes of potential. She writes without bitterness or rancor and there is a lot of optimism in her poems. I like the part where she writes rather philosophically:
“Life is planted like a seed
Only one can water it with smiles”
Over the last few years, Pule Lechesa has burst onto the literary scene, especially as an activist and has done a lot to put Free State writings on the internet. He is the self-styled “mighty bard from the dorp” a fine poet. He has published a collection of poems, The legacy we leave behind, and I have seen a few of his poems on the internet,
I however agree with ace writer Omoseye Bolaji’s pithy comment on Lechesa’s poetry published in the April – June Free State Libraries journal. Bolaji wrote: “Lechesa’s poetry has an old-world, definitely (black) un-African feel about it”
Incidentally versatile writer, Omoseye Bolaji also writes poems occasionally, but always points out that he does not regard himself as a poet. But let us give Bolaji his due for publishing three books of poetry – Snippets, Reverie, and Poems from Mauritius.
Tanki Phafoli was only 19 when he published his collection of poems titled: Take a look Inside. At best I can only point out that Tanki’s poetry is promising. I have to agree with Pule Lechesa who wrote in his book, THE EVOLUTION OF FS BLACK LITERATURE: “The flip side of publishing so early is immaturity…the likes of Es’kia Mphahlele have harped on this, This immaturity is present in Tanki’s work,”
Lebohang Thaisi was one of the first young Mangaung poets to get published. The name of his book is A Voice from Mangaung. The work has a charming, simple aura. Incidentally in the latest edition of Free State News I have extensively reviewed Thaisi’s book. I have copies here (give copies to them). – which those interested can go through.
Before I round off, let me mention two other Free State poets who have published collection of poems. Leslie Sello Tlhabanelo published Responsibility which contains some interesting poems; Ntate Kgang Abel Motheane published Nowadays Poetry which contains a lot of African wisdom, which is not surprising considering the author is almost 70!
Allow me to end this address by again quoting one of Africa’s greatest literary craftsmen, Njabulo Ndebele. When I was in exile (overseas) Prof Ndebele wrote me, and exhorted we poets as follows:
“Poets must recognize that their major preoccupation is people. Poets recognize the great variety of human beings. But they do not see this variety as a problem. It is for them a source of strength, a challenge to understand all people. That way we may even tragically recognize that sometimes we may come across something of ourselves in the enemy that we condemn…what do we do with that recognition, that knowledge? We ignore it at our peril, for it is such moments that make us feel intensely human…always the poet reaches out towards the ultimate understanding. That is how the poet triumphs over adversity, poverty, oppression, injustice, exile etc…”*
I think my brief is over. Thank you very much.
· This excerpt is taken from the book, LETTERS TO A POET
This speech was delivered by Flaxman Qoopane, on the occasion of “Free State of Verse” held at PACOFS on 24 Nov, 07.
November 25th, 2007 at 5:35 pm
Incredible! What speed! There really is NO blog like our beloved kagablog….how Ntate Flaxman will be delighted
November 26th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
An excellent key note address by Mr Flaxman. Pity the occasion itself was rather elitist
November 26th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
I agree. Look at Ntate Flaxman’s speech - virtually all the poets he mentions; none was at , or rather none was invited to the occasion. We are talking about ten key FS poets - none at this occasion! If this is not elitism, what is?
November 26th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
to the best of my knowledge the event was not by invite but was announced in community newspapers in bloemfontein, on lesedi fm, morning live and in sowetan and other mainstream media as well as on the kagablog. there were also posters in bloemfontein. the entrance fee to the performance was R30.00 and to both the launch and the performance (inclussive of the individual’s choice of a copy of one of the launched books) the entrance fee was R100.00. Considering the price of books and the quality of the works and the excellent performance on the day this was a bargain. Even students like myselef were able to attend and young and upcoming local poets were given a platform to read\perform their works. The poets launching their books were very humble, they interacted with everybody without descrimination. i personally found nothing elitist about the event. perhaps writers who will only attend a booklaunch if they receive personal invites are the ones who are elitist.
November 26th, 2007 at 6:17 pm
i am glad that ntjapedi has come to the defense of this well meant event. in the face of scathing oneliners, by people who did not bother to raise these ‘concerns’ with us as hosts and performers at the free state of verse…i am glad there were people who read the script without preconceived prejudices. i must say, we do not apologize for both the nature and timing of our event. we brought back to the free state, two nationally acclaimed poets whose roots are in the free state, to inspire upcoming poets, who also got a platform. through this event one poet is alsmots guaranteed exposure in international stages because of his excellent use of sesotho and humour in his poetry. elitists must please refrain from labelling other people’s events. organize your events and see if we wont pitch up. dont advertise in your circles but make it open like we did. if i was easily swayed by critics, i would give up on the free state. however, i still believe in the free state and will continue doing what we are doing. more events are on the way.
November 27th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
Good to see all this attention re Flaxman’s speech, even if some of the commentators do not refer to it. I don’t believe blogs should be used for exchanging futile brickbats, though it is strange that most of the poets referred to in this keynote address were not at the event. I know most of them, and they are NOT elitist; just struggling chaps who love coruscating verses!
November 28th, 2007 at 10:04 am
Even a child can see that comment 4 here was no doubt dictated by commentator 5. The so-called student becomes a good Press officer or PRO in a way that is not possible in real life.”I would give up on the Free State”. What arrogance. No wonder the real grassroots poets felt alienated from the poetry event.
November 28th, 2007 at 10:08 am
do we really need to explain why these TEN poets were not at the event. i am sad to tell you i do not know them personnally. i do not refute their great accomplishments, its just that i do not know them. i know ICEBOUND, JAHROSE, FRANS, MACHOGO, etc. and all the poets i know were there…we did not invite them, they saw the adverts and they attended, as they attend all other events of poetry. perhaps the question of why these TEN people were not there should be directed at them. Flaxman chose the subject of his speech (which was enlightening) but did he have to quote only poets who were there. i think in his intro he mentioned that poets do not know each other and its time they did. i hope this issue rests, with the retraction of the labelling of our event as ELITIST.
November 28th, 2007 at 10:14 am
and Oh about comment 7, i deliberately refrain from responding. it is such thinking that will keep the free state bound. dear BOLAJi and Flaxman; you are the two people in this forum i have met and i know. i think you know me, and it hurts me to be labelled arrrogant by faceless people, whose forte is reviwing other works…i will ignore this arron sonny and continue doing what i do. i will not give up on the free state, like many true artists have and settled in the JOZILAND. where is napo, where is bofelo, where is tsireletso, where is makgano? we are talking about people who are nationally acknowledged and who want to plough back to the free state. i brought them here and will continue doing so, the like of aroon can sit in their grass.
November 28th, 2007 at 10:42 am
arrogance indeed is denying the ability of others to think for themselves. What emperic tool did aaron use to arrive at the conclussion that the comments i made were dictated to by another person. talk of arrogance!
November 28th, 2007 at 11:53 am
dear editor, i dare you to trace the ISP of my messages, and if they are the same an Ntjhapedi…then my reputation can be flushed down the toilet.
November 28th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
As far as I can see, the gist of the tumult above is captured in the excerpt from the great flaxman’s book. A poet should never concern himself with what critics or self-proclaimed pundits think.
Poets are supposed to be the mouthpiece of their communities, speaking without fear or favour. chronicling our times as they see them in the interest of future generations.
The question that should be on everybody’s lips should be; what kind of a legacy am’i leaving behind for my children?
I’d rather not be remembered for petty wranglings with aspirant wordsmiths but rather be remembered for having churned out and inspired other great talents.
I think the greatest challenge that writers are faced with is to try and understand one another.
I rest.
November 29th, 2007 at 8:07 am
i think we are doing a disservice to ntate flaxman by moving the focus away from his great speech and issues coming out of it to quarrel over whether there event was elitist or not, or who is a grassroot poet and who is not. as mr flaxman said in his speech, poerts do not know each other. we should be grabbing the opportunity availed by thios blog and events such as the free state of verse to reach out to each other and engage in contructive networking, partnerships and collaborations. this cannot happen when others assume the mantle of master poets and decide that just because they do not know some people then it means those people are new or aspirant poets. just listen to this”i rather not be remembered for petty wranglings with “aspirant wordsmiths”. there you have it: poets calling others aspirant wordsmiths. even when i was first introduced on the kagablog, i was welcomed by someone from the free state writers as “a new voice”. After 25 years of writing and performing and being published in journals, anthologies and websites i become “a new voice” just because some people who consider themselves authorities on the free state literary scene do not know me. i think we should put this “debate” to rest and rather focus on how to put our minds and hands together to work for the development of literature and the arts in free state. there is more that connects us than that disconnects us. let’s use this blog to share information about each other and each other’s projects and to deliberate on areas in which we can work together.
November 29th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
There is no need whatsoever for this type of attacks on the blog. That’s why many observers say that black (writers) can’t take any criticism, no matter how mild. The emphasis should be on Mr Qoopane’s inspiring speech, which is already attracting national and international interest, judging from queries on FS Black poetry we are receiving this week. Of course Mr Bolaji and Mr Flaxman have the advantage of specialised knowledge on most of the published poets over the years, since they discovered, encouraged (and helped to publish) most of them. But nobody can know ALL the poets around. I have heard great academics calling themselves “aspirant poets” which shows humility. There is no insult here. With all these confrontational comments on the blog, poetry itself suffers. I cringe from adding that the image of FS itself might be negatively affected.
November 29th, 2007 at 3:04 pm
i once again that the emphasis should be on the great speech of mr qoopane. still there is a difference in a person calling himself’\herself an aspirant poet (which as you correctly put it highlights humility) and another person deciding to take it upon himself to label others aspirant poets. the context and the tone in which the label was placed is very important to take cognisant of. anyone reading thaisi’s comments can see that he uses that label to desribe others and not himself. that is not humility. off course no one can know all the writers and i salute bolaji and qoopane and the rest of the people under the banner of free state writers for the great work they have done. what i was cautioning against was that just because one knows enough writers in the fs he should not assume that he knows all of them and thefore assume that whoever he does not know or has not heard about is knew on the scene. but as i have said already i hope we will return back to the speech and other initiatives towards taking literature in the fs and in the country forward. again i must indicate that i really admire the bit that qoopane, bolaji and their colleagues are doing for literature in the fs as much as i salute sipho mnyakeni and icebound for the work they are doing. there are many more people doing great things for literature and the arts in the province. all we need to do is to find out about the work being done in all parts of fs and find ways of collaborating. at the end of the day we share the love for literature and the arts and that is enough to bring us together. at the same time i do not think that rasing critical comments is necessarily a bad thing. i personally like the fact that the issue that the event waselitist was raised. i myself was worried that the admission fee in itself could exclude a great number of lovers of the word. i only found solace in the fact that there was a performance after the launch at the price of r30. i was also dissapointed that we did not manage to have a workshop component as we had planned.napo also was seriously disturbed by the fact that we were not able to have the workshop. but we have already agreed with icebound and sipho about a series of workshops next year. at the end of the day nothing we do can be perfect, so the criticism raised was proper. but the responses to the critic are also okay. if we make it taboo to be criticised or to be responded to when we raaise our critical voices then we are killing the culture of debate of which is vital for any society. if any thing, this blog proves that free state is alive and kicking. thanks and salutations to everbody involved. we are one family by virtue of our common love for the word.
November 29th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
Ntate wa Bafelo, you are a great great man. I have done some research on the internet on u. Pls u are above all this brickbats. People like u do not need to sell yourself. Thanks for your comments sir
November 30th, 2007 at 9:07 am
I’m not sure I like this attack on Mr Lebohang Thaisi. It is the WRITTEN WORD that counts, hence authors – poets – like Thaisi and Job Mzamo have inspired countless lovers of poetry (who read their books in libraries) over the years. To be honest I don’t really give a damn about most of the so-called performing poets, no matter how much they praise themselves, or get sponsored by patronizing whites. Who ever remembers whatever it is they perform on stage? We respect Shakespeare over the centuries because of the brilliance of his published plays and poems. For those who might claim the importance of such performing poets in old African society, they must remember that almost all of these modern performing poets lack the great philosophies, wisdom, special expressions, deep African proverbs etc in their performances. What most of these modern performing poets have is a great ego, and full of themselves. In terms of real poetry most of them are not recognized in their own homes, not to talk of in their neighbourhood. They don’t have a fraction of the poetic talent of the likes of Job Mzamo
November 30th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
It is exciting to see these type of debate… Infact I encourage talks of this nature, they are healthy for our posterity… Just cease insulting one another i dont think u want to emulate battle rappers, they do that for fun. Lets focus on issues that will improve the mindsets and material conditions of our society. there are millions of writers out there some prefer not to distribute their works becouse fame is not their desire. There are also some who also want to earn respect by force…This is a new era, lets accept changes and adapt becouse i believe every poet possesses a charactaristic of a dynamic being…its better to write that comment about other people’s writings.
November 30th, 2007 at 12:53 pm
I’m sending some of my writings to the blog… please comment… oh one other thing I will officially invite all members of fs writers when we organise another show please stop complaining. Just write… Blessed
December 4th, 2007 at 10:07 am
i contend, shyying away from reality in the name of peace will benefit no one. this debate was sparked by a comment that insulted our event as ‘elitist’ and reference to us poets as ‘aspirant wordsmiths’. if this debate will have closure, the authors of the above insults must be humble enough to admit that they put the cart before the horse; they criticized what they did not understand. as for giving a ‘damn’ (sic) about performing poets; guys be judges. elitist poetry is primarily written for reading. performance poetry is for commentary on societal issues. i am a poet, author and performiing poet….but will not be silent when either of these disciplines is insulted.
dont get me started on the quality of the many so-called published works.
December 4th, 2007 at 10:14 am
QUOTE OF THE YEAR:
it is better to write than comment on other people’s writing.
I CLOSE MY CASE.