An important
message that is conveyed in the poem 'The Womb' by Apirana Taylor
is 'The Impact of Colonisation on the Land' This message is
emphasised throughout the poem by using effective language features
such as narrative point of view, imagery and contrast. A persona is
used throughout the poem to talk directly to the reader and make
them feel responsible. Imagery creates a powerful picture in the
reader's mind making them realise the impact on the land. Finally,
there is an admirable sense of contrast in this poem going from
anger to vengeance.
One of the most noticeable language features used in this
poem is narrative point of view. Its written in second-person, so
Papatuanuku (god of the land) explains her perspective on NZ
colonisation
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It is portrayed
by using metaphors, similes and word choice. The author uses these
features to create a clear and overwhelming picture in the readers
mind of the destruction caused to the land. Taylor also relates
most of his writing to his Maori heritage. The Maori culture has
utmost respect for nature as its deeply sacred to them. The
message of destruction is not only being communicated by imagery
but also culturally. Your ploughs like the fingernails of a woman
scarred my face is an example of effective word choice and a
simile. The sentence scarred my face relates to the physical pain
of the land. The author puts across the idea of how humane the land
is and how it suffers pain similarly to humans. The purpose is to
allow the reader to relate to the lands emotions. The messages
being conveyed in this poem are still relevant today. We have to
realise that our actions impact the environment not only those
carried out thousands of years ago but what we are doing today.
Its the choice between recycling or polluting that can make a huge
difference. We should start thinking about the environment as a
living, breathing individual. This can and will change the way we
interact with nature around us. In simple terms, treat nature the
way you want to be
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The first half
has an angry tone to begin with towards the colonisers for what has
been done to the land. This changes to being vengeful and
threatening to all of mankind with real-world warnings. Papatuanuku
angrily explains our actions and will strike back in ways we dont
expect that is deadly to all humans. For instance, the land says
Ruamoko the unborn god rumbles within me and the fires of Ruapehu
still lives Ruamoko is god of the volcanos and Mount Ruapehu is an
active volcano in
New
Zealandwhich last had a major eruption twenty years ago.
Papatuanuku is threatening us and foreshadows the future that one
day, Ruapehu will erupt. The authors purpose of writing about
threats to humanity is to remind us of the horrible actions we have
committed to our environment. There are numerous instances
nationally and internationally where the land has taken its revenge
by killing millions of humans, animals and infrastructure. One of
the worlds deadliest earthquakes and tsunamis were in Ache,
Indonesia (2004) with a magnitude of 9.1, killing 280,000 people.
This earthquake is the perfect example of the land taking revenge.
Its intention was to cause death and destruction and certainly did
in just fifteen minutes. It was the way the land shows its anger
and
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