17.
ARTICLES
A NOTE O N
A
M O D E R N E T H IO P IA N PROTEST POEM
by Richard G r e e n fie ld
1*
The Ethiopian literary trad itio n , in Ge^ez and later in Am haric,
is a long one:
too long to be discussed h e re .z
Suffice it to say that
both G e ' ez and A m baric, now the first o ffic ia l language o f Ethiopia,
value the double entendre as a form of w it . In verse, surface or apparent
meaning is referred to as 'w ax' and underlying innuendo, often more
im portant, as 'g o ld '. T ra d itio n a lly , great freedom of comment has been
permitted even o rally at court, always provided the 'jester' was w itty in
this m anner. Indeed, so important is 'wax and gold' that it has been taken
as a central theme around which to w rite a study of Amhara society.^
How­
e v e r, a ll this is not to say that verse and prose written in Amharic cannot
also be quite d irect; indeed the little social criticism and general 'protest*
w ritin g surviving from the reigns of Emperor Eyasu (1 9 1 1 -1 9 1 6 ), Empress
Zauditu (1 9 1 6 -1 9 3 0 ) and p articu larly Emperor H aile Sellassie (1 9 3 0 )
and from the Italian Occupation has been so. Y et an element of 'wax and
gold' is seldom en tire ly absent.
Also important is the fact that in Northeastern A fric a , as in
A ra b ia , poetry, especially spoken poetry, has immense cultural significance.
It has long been a custom in the University C ollege of Addis Ababa for the
best poems o f the year to be read aloud over the loudspeakers to the crowds
surrounding the football fie ld on college open days. Programmes of cultural
a c tiv itie s run together w ith a th le tic events. Almost always the Emperor and
his entourage, members o f the royal fam ily and government, attended these
'C o lleg e Days' and custom has not changed since the absorption o f the
University C o lleg e into the larger structure of the H aile Sellassie First
*
M r . Richard D . G re en field is a Senior Research Fellow in Ethiopian
History and P olitics.
a r t ic l e s
18
U n iv e rs ity in December 1961.
H o w e v e r, a newer precedent was set ea rly in 1961 when a
poerr^read before the emperor and e n title d "The Poor Man Speaks",
was w r itte n and d e liv e re d in a manner w h ic h could easily be in te r ­
preted as severe c r itic is m o f the governm ent and ipso facto therefore
(in Ethiopia) o f the jjm p e ro r. A lim ite d number o f copies of the poem
w ere sold to the p u b lic and th e ir b la c k market price by that very
e vening in the nightclub s and bars o f Addis Ababa had risen as never
b e fo r e . Attem pts were made to suppress the poem and the author found
it prudent to re tire somewhat into the b a c kgroun d.
This fa irly minor incident was remembered the following year
when the students announced their 'C ollege D a y ', to be held on Saturday,
the 9th of June, 1962. The security forces discreetly asked for copies
of the new poems that would be read to the public presumably in front of
the Emperor. The student leaders — not only the poets — protested this
'afifont' to th eir 'freedom 1, and refused to supply them.
Either the
Security C h ie f or the President o f the U niversity, the Emperor's grandsonin -la w , conveyed this fact back to the p a la c e , and the gmperor did not
attend the C ollege D a y, The student newspaper stated that this was
because of the question of 'censorship' of the poetry and termed the
problem one of "protocol". Even so, three Amharle poems were read
and sold a t 5 Ethiopian cents per duplicated copy. By evening the
exchange value of these poems was 50 cents and if subsequently rose
even higher. These poems are in the tradition of "The Poor Man Speaks"
of 19 61 . The first,"Subm it to Cross Examination" or "Prepare to Answer
Questions", is discussed in this paper. The second,entitled "Life "d w e lls
on the uneven distribution of w ealth in Ethiopia, — the rich, it points
out,are few and the poor multitudinous. The third,"You Are Lost on the
Plain",seeks to examine the purpose o f a soldier's life and the nature of
his duty— d significant question riot so many months after the abortive
ARTICLES
T9
coup d 'e ta t o f 1960 and the Army crisis o f 1961 which the w riter has
described elsew here.^
A synopsis of the poem "Submit to Cross Examination" might go
as fo llo w s:Questions come to the mind of the poet over and over again and
he is p u zzle d , troubled, and frustrated. He seeks answers from people
of a ll ages, occupations, and status, but none are of any help to him .
He even goes to the forest to seek answers from different species in the
animal world but they too fail him . Finally — and this has a "gold"
significan ce, since several leading radicals or progressives died in or
follow ing the abortive coup d 'e ta t of December 1960 - - the poet travels
to the "country o f the d ea d 11 and asks the inhabitants there his series of
problem questions.
W ith the first question begins the main body of the poem which is
concerned with social criticism . The significance of the more disquieting
aspects o f contemporary Ethiopia — from the poet's point of view (which
is not untypical o f many young intellectuals) — are surveyed; the
description of w ealth and the gap between the haves and the have-nots;
the oppression o f man by man and the despair and burdens which a fflic t
the in te lle c tu a l in the system, are a ll touched upon — more perhaps
than the nature o f the p o litic a l structure its e lf. Criticism of c iv il
servants who are ab le to adjust to a sem i-feudal society are quite common
in modern Ethiopian protest w ritin g , jn the 1960’s p a rtic u la rly , the
problems o f beggars and displaced youths in city society, of the peasant
farmers, and the problems presented by the attitudes of the clergy of the
Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Church, the government security services,
by censorship and control of the press, by prostitution, e tc .,h a v e fre ­
quently been discussed and this poem is thus again ty p ic a l. The poet is
also concerned by the conception o f freedom and its interpretation in a
society which uses the same Amharic word for that concept as for the
concept o f national independence.
ARTICLES
20.
F in a lly , the poet, exhausted by the fact that no one, including
the dead, supplies immediate answers, asks his audience to remain silen t.
S ig n ific a n tly , in the sense of the "gold", he remarks that they are not
com pletely" dead, i . e . their ideas are a c lu e --e v e n an in sp iratio n -to such as h e. The poet concludes by expressing his satisfaction that he
js^ reaching an audience and that his words (interpreted in the "gold")
a re , in fa c t, a veh icle for the ideas of people now dead1.
Even so the force of this poem lies less in its use of traditional
"wax and gold" and rather more in its somewhat unusually bold enum­
eration o f the uglier aspects of life in Ethiopia, is the poet sees them.
The poet uses symbolism and extended metaphor but the Amharic is
nonetheless that of the common man charged with emotion and concern
for social reform and aw attempt has been made to convey this in the
English. Some degree of paraphrasing in the translation has therefore
been u n avo id ab le.
Submit to Cross-examination
t am puzzled and worried because I cannot find an answer to a
question in my heart.
The laughter in me is turned into earnest sadness.
I am supposed to know more than fhe ordinary man I am counted among the learned men o f my time M y thoughts soar above the clouds-
But a l l , a ll in v a in 1.
M y knowledge has been w astedI am unable to re a liz e the hopes locked in my breast.
21
ARTICLES
I have gone in search o f the solution to my problem .
I thought that c h ild re n might know the answer;
Then I th o u g h t, i f c h ild re n do n o t, old e r people might know;
I w ent to servants and maids too;
I w ent to great landlords and also to mere squatters;
I w ent to men and to women;
To the handsome and the b e a u tifu l;
To learned men and to illite r a te s ;
to rulers and to subjects;
To urban dw e lle rs and to country fo lk .
I asked them a l l -
everyone of them.
Then I went to the woods and asked every species of animal
In the vain hope o f finding the answer to my problem.
It was then that I determined not to seek help from any living being.
Dejected and tire d , I started out on a different journey.
A journey to the country of the dead.
The dead w ill be able to help me, I thought;
And I started to ask questions one a fter the other.
Inhabitants o f the land o f the dead'.
Men o f the remotest w o rld 1.
Tell us about your cou n tryAbout its limits and boundaries;
ARTICLES
22.
Its d iff e r e n tia tin g c h a ra c te ris tic s .
How is your country d iffe r e n t from ours?
Jealousy, in trig u e and o u trig h t meannessWe have these in our c o u n tr y 1.
Do you have them th e re , to o ?
We e n treat you to t e ll us a l l about your c o u n tr y Lest we a rriv e there a ll unprepared.
We are c o n vin c e d that we cannot o u tliv e tim e .
We o n ly d r i f t a lo n g .
O h for a meeting w ith a man who has returned from the land o f the dead
I w ould lik e to ask him a thousand and one questions'.
W hat is the p o l i t i c a l se t-u p in the realm o f the dead?
Does if have a real p a tte rn ?
O r o n ly a pattern w ith o u t a design?
How about its riches?
A re they c o lle c t e d into the hands o f the fe w ?
Does oppression, slavery and the to rturing o f man by man abound there?
A re there people who dance w h ile others w e e p ?
O r do people hold meetings, discussions and strikes for a superior end?
A re there engineers, doctors, lawyers and such th e re ?
ARTICLES
23.
W h a t is the number o f people in h a b itin g that w o r ld ?
Do the people liv e at peace w ith th e ir leaders?
O r do they quarrel and rise up against them ?
A re the ruled s ile n t , a fra id and t im id ?
O r do they speak up about th e ir g rie va n c e s ?
Are people's lives p a rtly hidden for fear of murderers?
Is the sky there above the g round?
Do flow ers b lo o m ?
Do birds sing a t harvest tim e ?
Do people have freedom of expression?
W hat happens to man i f he express c o m p la in t against the rising sun
A nd the com ing o f d a y b r e a k For such phenomena, as he sees them ,
Signal but the beginning of a day w ithout food and drink?
Can he complain about having to w alk in the mud barefoot?
Is he free to express his views on another man's merits and demerits?
Are actions such as these to lerated ?
W hat do the people o f the country of the dead valu e?
Do people sleep there?
Do boredom and despair abound there?
Is work taboo?
W hat is the mental state of people there?
ARTICLES
24
A re the people b ra v e ?
Do they r e v o lt, a fte r d e lib e r a t io n , when there is such necessity?
Do people there go for the g litt e r i n g and the s u p e r fic ia lr or cars bought on c r e d it and sophisticated c lo t h in g ?
W hat is the a ttitu d e o f p u b lic servants towards th e ir dem ocratic responsibilities?
A re they honest and u p rig h t men?
O r are they mere slaves to th e ir own selfish desires
A nd stooges o f the powers th a t b e ?
A re there poor men in the c ountry o f the dead?
How do they earn th e ir liv e l ih o o d ?
A re th e y lite r a te or i l l i t e r a t e ?
Do they beg in the streets
A n d sleep on open verandas
A n d on flig h ts o f steps exposed to the c o ld and the weather
O r do they support themselves?
W h a t is the li f e o f the farmer th e re ?
W hat k in d o f plough does he h ave?
Does he own a farm o f his own
O r is he m erely a tenant farm er?
Does he m erely farm fo r subsistence or for m ore?
T e ll me about the average m an’s home1.
Does i t consist o f a c o n ic a l tu ku l w ith a thatched roof
25.
ARTI CLES
A firep lace open and central
W ith cow l beside It?
Are there priests, deacons and clergymen In the country of the dead?
Answer only of that kind which knows not what It talks of'.
W hat o f their number?
Overwhelm ing great?
And do they 6lng the same rhyme year after year?
Do they ever harp on prayer and fasting?
Two things whose significance they understand not one jot'.
Do they teach the observance of a thousand and one holy days?
Today Is Sunday.'
Tomorrow Is S t. G eo rg e, the next A bo,
Then comes S t. G a b r ie l, S t. M ich ael and St. M ary,
Then S t. John, Kldane M Ih re t, Bishop Takl6 Haymanot,
S t. Steven and the rest'.
5
If your people observe a ll these for th eir souls' salvation,
How can they liv e from day to day?
And what o f those who do not conform and holiday?
Are they excommunicate - ostracised from society?
Does your church use these weapons too?
W hat do your priests teach o f h ell and heaven?
Is h ell said to be fu ll o f worms w ith no sleep there?
And fires that burn w ithout end?
Do they answer Yes'.
No'.
Black'.
W hite'.
-
no grey?
26
a r t ic l e s
And the educated there, are there a n y ?
Is theirs too a life o f fear and c o n f l i c t ?
Are they p ro d u c tive and resourceful
O r s te rile ?
Com m itted
-
or f i c k l e ?
Changing lik e the cham eleon ?
Is the educated man in the country o f the dead regarded as an outcast
from society ?
A n e c c e n tr ic ?
O r is he recognized for w hat he is?
Where does he l i v e ?
In a room in a h o te l, or an apartm ent, or w h e re ?
W hat does he do i f he cannot sleep?
Smoke, d rin k and f r o l i c ?
Play chess?
O r just d r i f t along ?
A re there a great number o f c it y slickers in your country?
A re your c itie s crowded with informers and secret p olice?
-Im m ature and in e x p e rie n c e d , dogging the weak and the innocent
- w a t c h in g governm ent c itiz e n s with e v il intention?
W hat do they f in d ?
ARTICLES
27.
W h a f do they re p o rt?
Do they r e a lly know what they are d o in g ?
Do they re a liz e the consequences o f th e ir a c tio n s ?
They sow the seeds o f fear
A nd distrust among the peo p le .
W hat p rin c ip le s can they be f o llo w in g ?
W hat do they liv e for other than to ruin the lives o f others?
A re there prostitutes in the country o f the dead?
Do they stand by th e ir doorways b id d in g the passers-by to e n te r?
W o rk in g a t n ig h t and sleeping during the d a y ?
How do they dress at n ig h t?
Do they look lik e scarecrows w ith th e ir short skirts?
O r do they have b e a u tifu l n a tio n a l dresses?
W h a t do the rich o f the cou n try o f the dead think o f the lives o f
these pro stitu te s ?
Do they th in k th e ir lives are fu ll o f luxury or hardship?
The a b i l i t y to earn the bare necessities o f l i f e Food, shelter and c l o t h in g .
G e ttin g and spending;
Living from hand to mouth;
-S e q u e n tia l misery;
C aught in a net o f necessary e v i l ,
28.
ARTICLES
S e llin g themselves to the beat o f music.
Tell me, is the country o f the dead also a c it y o f prostitutes?
The misery o f young girls;
The ca ncer o f a w hole people;
That is what p ro stitu tio n is.
A fast spreading disease it is.
W hat laws are made to check i t ?
And w hat replaces i t ?
W hat halts its d e v a s ta tio n ?
Is there censorship in your c o u n try ?
Does it pass for wisdom to organise to k i l l
The flo w e rin g author
And in t e n t io n a lly to b e l i t t l e his w o r k ?
Is your h eritage o f lite ra tu re mature or in fa n t?
O f w hat do your authors w r i t e ?
Do they m erely p la g ia r iz e themes of fla tte ry , eulogy and hero worship?
O f w hat do your poets sing
And your p o litic ia n s propound?
And the reading p u b lic ?
Is it sick o f i t
-
o f this great garbage heap?
AR TI CL ES
29.
Do you censor literatu re to g lo rify the fatuous
To bury the sublime?
Is there freedom In the country of the dead?
W hat is this Freedom?
Has it the image o f chauvinism Cheap nationalism O r naught but h o llo w , bragging, lip service?
O r has it form w ithout shape,
Solidity w ithout R ig id ity?
Is the tradition o f freedom rooted in your past?
O r but an innovation o f the tim e?
If It is not a lie n to your cu ltu re,
On w hat c rite ria do you judge it?
Could you mean merely 'te rrito ria l in teg rity'
When you think o f Freedom?
Could that be w hat you mean by Freedom?
Whot e x a c tly Is Freedom?
Can mere physical survival be ca lled freedom?
Does hunger, p o verty, suffering and complacency surround you
And you c a ll if freedom?
Do common men in the country'of the dead
a r t ic les
30.
Know that others make lig h t o f th e ir freedom
A nd exchange it for th e ir own vested interest?
. e o p le , . could go on asking you questions one a fte r another . . .
But I th in k I w i l l cut my questions short
For fear that you m ight get bored.
A l l the same, I w ant to thank you People c f the cou n try o f the dead For your k in d a t t e n t io n .
For now
-
keep my words;
And the answers that are suggested by your minds,
Keep them too.
You are dead - yet not com pletely dead.
You hear but you don't answer.
But your listening to me - this is significant achievement enoughYou have been doing h a lf the talking'.
|r takes two people to hold a conversation;
O ne listens w h ile the other talks.
31
A R T I C L ES
Footnotes
1.
M r . G r e e n fie ld wishes to acknow led ge great help in the trans­
la tio n and discussion o f this poem from an Ethiopian who prefers
to remain anonymous. He is also gra te fu l to Praeger Publishers
for permission to use a few lines o f the poem already published
by them in trans lation in his E th io p ia , A N e w P o litic a l H istory,
London and N e w Y o rk , 1965.
2.
A useful summary o f Ethiopian lite r a r y tra d itio n may be found
in U . S . Arm y Area Handbook for Ethiopia, Department o f Army
Pamphlet 5 5 0 -2 8 , W ashington, 2nd Edn. 1964, pages 137-146.
A p a ra lle l but a bbreviate d section is to be found in George A .
Lipsky (editor) E thiopia, Its Peoples, Its S o cie ty, Its C u ltu re ,
The A m erican Un iv e r s ity , MRAF Press. N e w Haven 1962,
pages 1 2 1 -2 8 .
3.
Donald Levine, Wax and G o ld , Tradition and Innovation in
Ethiopian C u ltu re, University of C hicago, 1965. See especially
pages 5 -1 7 .
4.
See G re e n fie ld ,
5.
Further information on these figures is to be found in Sir E .A .
W allis Budge, The Book of the Saints of the Ethiopian Church,
4 V o ls ., Cam bridge, 1928. A recertf study on the significance
o f Ethiopian names, with translations, is Tekle-Tsadik M ekouria,
Les Noms Propres, Les Noms de Bfrptfeme et L* Etude G^n^alogique
des Rois d 'EthiopTe ( X ( II- X X Si ecles) A Travers Leurs Noms
Patronymiques, Belgrade 1966.
op. c it.
(S )® © ®
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons
Attribution - Noncommercial - NoDerivs 4.0 License.
To view a copy of the license please see:
http://creativecommons.Org/licenses/bv-nc-nd/4.0/
This is a download from the BLDS Digital Library on OpenDocs
http://opendocs.ids.ac.uk/opendocs/
if^ i
Institute of
Development Studies