Analysis of K'an



His face appears hard from years of work
yet his eyes tell the story of a kind and caring soul.

An English born boy
grows up in South Africa
and spends his days sailing around the world.
Most would hesitate to place an identity on such a man,
yet anyone who’s been to Africa
knows that he is South African.

Something changes in your heart
when you live the life of an African.
Your face becomes more serious;
but your eyes become kinder, your smile grows wider.
And your loyalties lie in the red dirt and roots of the acacia trees.

He has a voice that haunts me long after he is gone.
A raspy South African accent when he speaks
but a young Bob Dylan when he sings.

He is full of contrasts and contradictions
and so I am drawn to him.
My mind says no
but my body and soul say yes.


Scheme XX XAXXAB XBXXX XXX XXXX
Poetic Form Tetractys  (25%)
Metre 110111111 11110101010101 11011 1101100 0111100101 111011101001101 110111100 11111100 1010011 1110111100 11011100 111011011110 011001001101100101 1101111110111 010110001111 101110111 1111100010 0111111 1111 11100111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 763
Words 154
Sentences 10
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 2, 6, 5, 3, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 31
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 123
Words per stanza (avg) 31
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Submitted on May 01, 2011

Modified on May 03, 2023

46 sec read
40

Mwalimu

My name is Theresa, I love to write and read poetry. My favourite poet is Billy Collins. I am mainly inspired to write by everyday happenings or feelings, and I often write with some humour or sarcasm. My travel experiences have also influenced my writing, some of my favourite places to travel have been Cuba, Tanzania, Uganda, and South Africa. I was born in Canada but I am now living and teaching in the Middle East. Please feel free to leave comments or suggestions on any of my poems. more…

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