Island Man Grace Nichols

The Poem Island Man Morning And the Island man wakes up To the sound of blue surf In his head The steady breaking and wombing Wild seabirds And fisherman puling out to sea The sun surfacing defiantly From the east Of his small emerald island He always comes back groggily groggily Comes back to sands Of a grey metallic soar To surge of wheels To dull North Circular roar Muffling muffling His crumpled pillow waves Island man heaves himself Another London day

Background of Poet Grace Nichols was born in Georgetown, Guyana and lived in a small village on the country's coast until her family moved to the city when she was fourteen years old. She took a Diploma in Communications from the University of Guyana, and subsequently worked as a teacher (1967–70), as a journalist and in government information services, before she emigrated to the UK in Much of her poetry is characterised by Caribbean rhythms and culture, and influenced by Guyanese and Amerindian folklore.

Overall Meaning Poem is written in third person, about a Caribbean man living in London. The Island Man misses the Caribbean, and is not enjoying his life in London. Comparing and Contrasting the two counties is an important element throughout the poem

Structure 6 stanzas 4/6 stanzas are about the Caribbean, 2/6 are about England There is only one line in the last stanza There is no rhyme scheme until the 4 th stanza, which rhymes soar and roar. Not a constant rhythm, changes throughout the poem but typically has 6-8 beats each line

Language/Images Alliteration: groggily groggily, muffling muffling The author uses a lot of verbs ending in –ing such as, breaking, wombing, muffling, surfacing Personification is used in the line The sun surfacing defiantly When the poet talks about the Caribbean there is a lot of positive and strong imagery When the poet talks about London, it is very negative

Effect on Reader Extremely relatable poem, especially within an International School Makes the reader think about home or a place they miss or feeling uncomfortable in a new place

Activity Make a table on your paper comparing and contrasting how the Island Man views the Caribbean vs England. How do you know the Island Man feels this way?