A Far Cry from Africa

A Far Cry from Africa Summary | Detailed Summary

"A Far Cry From Africa" begins with a description of the native Kikuyu tribe that later formed a sub tribe called the Mau Mau in what is now the Republic of Kenya against British rule. Although Walcott never mentions the Mau Mau by name, it can be inferred because of Walcott's history and his expressed intentions.

The first stanza compares Africa to an animal whose "pelt" has been ruffled. The ruffling of the pelt is the uprising of the Kikuyu people. Once the battle is over, corpses lie strewn across the ground. Walcott compares the brutal massacre to the massacre of the Jews. He infers that the British think the African's are as dispensable as Hitler thought the Jews to be.

In the second stanza, Walcott compares the warriors to animals. He says that violence in the animal kingdom is perfectly natural. However, he says that man fights against other men only to seek divinity and not as part of the natural order of things. Despite the fact that the conflict is bloody, the Kikuyu continue to fight because they fear the British rule after the conflict more than they fear death.

In the third stanza, the poem turns to Walcott's personal inner conflict over the war. Walcott is of mixed heritage (both English and African), and he cannot resolve the inner conflict between his hatred of colonialism and his love of England. He openly acknowledges that he is sympathetic to the African cause but at the same time, he still feels ties to England. He questions if he should give them both up. Finally, in the last line, he questions if he could, in good conscience, turn from Africa and continue to live.