essay on this is the dark time my love

• Jul 6, 2020

CSEC English B: This is the Dark Time, My Love by Martin Carter Poem Analysis

Updated: May 28, 2021

This is the Dark Time, My Love

Martin Carter

This is the dark time, my love,

All round the land brown beetles crawl about.

The shining sun is hidden in the sky

Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow.

It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.

It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery.

Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.

Who comes walking in the dark night time?

Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass?

It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader

Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream.

This poem is written in the context of the pain and suffering associated with war, and specifically the struggles of Guyana during British colonization in 1953. At that point, the constitution had been suspended to allow Britain to send soldiers into Guyana to crush the uprising of the people. It is likely that the ‘love’ spoken of by the persona is his country, however it could also simply be a woman who he loves. The poet communicates a gloomy atmosphere plagued with the sentiment of doom due to oppression by soldiers and weapons of terror. Nature reflects this gloom, as seen in the absence of sunlight and drooping flowers. The people of the country are all melancholy and anxiety-stricken, visibly oppressed by the spoils of war. Death (and war) is personified as a man who tramples not only nature, but the peace and dreams of the persona’s country underfoot. The mood of the poem is dismal and gloomy. The tone is pessimistic and sad, and the themes include war, conflict, doom, death and despair.

“This is the dark time, my love,”

The persona begins by declaring the dismal nature of their current time. This time is characterized by darkness, and therefore a sentiment of impending doom and unfavourable outcomes. The titular line conveys that the persona is speaking to someone, his ‘ love,’ which could simply be his lover, but could be better interpreted as being his country (like how the persona of ‘ It is the Constant Image of Your Face’ (Dennis Brutus) refers to his country as his ‘dearest love.’

“All round the land brown beetles crawl about.”

This refers to the British soldiers who occupied the country during this time. Note the use of alliteration here in ‘ b rown b eetles.’ The persona communicates a landscape filled with the soldiers, corresponding to the atmosphere of war.

“The shining sun is hidden in the sky Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow.”

Now, nature seems to reflect the dismal mood, the ‘dark time’ if you well. The sun does not shine in the sky, so it is not just dark in the sense of gloom, but also literally, with the absence of sunlight. The sun, like any sign of positive outcome or optimism is hidden. Reinforcing the mood, the poet personifies red flowers by saying that they ‘ bend their heads in awful sorrow.’ The flowers are given the quality of emotion and reflecting that emotion. Thus, even the flowers are mourning the dark times of death and sorrow. They are the colour red (the colour of blood), essentially the only colour mentioned in the poem.

“This is the dark time, my love, It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.”

The persona describes this dark time as a season, characterized by endless oppression, the dark metal of the machines of war and sadness. Note the repetition of the word ‘dark,’ which communicates the pessimistic outlook and an atmosphere of terror. The ‘dark metal’ likely refers to tankers and guns which oppress the people of the persona’s country.

“It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery. Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.”

The poet utilizes two oxymorons here (two contradicting ideas in close succession). He refers to this dark time of war as a festival (associated with joy and celebration) of guns (machines of terror, oppression and violent death). Quite incompatible/contradictory terms. He continues by describing it as a carnival (associated with fun and the joy of children) of misery (a terrible emotion of helplessness and despair). The persona remarks the strained emotions in the faces of everyone around him- including his own countrymen and the soldiers.

“Who comes walking in the dark night time? Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass?”

The poet uses rhetorical questions to lead into the reveal of a personification of war and death. It hints at something being closely related to dark times such as these, who has a ‘ boot of steel.’ This reflects the oppressive and abusive effect war has, pressing down on not only the environment, but on the people of the country as well. It tramples the grass underfoot, showing blatant disregard for nature- opting instead to fulfil selfish goals through needless death and suffering.

“It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream.”

The poet personifies death as a strange invader to the persona’s country. This man of death is said to not only crush nature under his steel boot, but also watch the persona’s love sleep and aim at destroying her dream. If the love he refers to truly is his country, then the man of death aims to wreck any possibility of realization of the dream held by the country overall- one of freedom and independence. The war and conflict spurred by the invasion of soldiers to crush resistance and attempts at liberation directly intends to destroy the dreams and optimism of the people of the country overall.

Recent Posts

CSEC English B: The Tempest Revision Notes- Romantic Love

Ah yes, romantic love- the wonderful burning fire sparking between naive youths which forms a central theme in The Tempest...

CSEC English B: The Tempest Revision Notes- Magic and the Supernatural

Magic is, without a doubt, among the strongest themes in The Tempest. Every major plot point in the play is either officiated by Prospero's

CSEC English B: The Tempest Revision Notes- Colonialism

If you live in the Caribbean, or any country other than the European superpowers for that matter (actually, even if you live within those...

• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• Disclosure Policy
• Refund and Returns Policy
• Events – with Search
• CSEC ENGLISH A & B SBA
• CSEC ENGLISH A EXAM OUTLINE 2018-2025
• CSEC English B 2023-2027 Texts, Poems, Short Stories
• CSEC English B Poems 2023-2027
• Password Reset
• [email protected]

This is the Dark Time, My Love -Martin Carter

LITERARY DEVICES

1.  REPETITION Stanza 1, line 1 & stanza 2, line 7: The repetition of this phrase highlights that there is something seriously amiss. The persona is telling his ‘love’ that this is a sad and terrible time.

2.  ALLITERATION This device literally draws the reader’s’ visual attention to the sentence. The sentence implies that everything that is good and positive is hidden away, or gone. This alliteration sets a sad tone at the very beginning of this poem.

3.  PERSONIFICATION This device emphasizes the sad tone of the poem. This is the case because flowers are usually associated with feelings of happiness and cheerfulness. Therefore, if the flowers – ambassadors of joy –  are sad, then it highlights how really sad the times have become.

4.  METAPHOR The contrast in this device is startling. The terms ‘festival’ and ‘carnival’ not only describes fun and festivity, but also a large amount of each. Both words are associated with huge crowds. This emphasizes how terrible the times have become because guns and misery are plentiful.

5.  RHETORICAL QUESTION Stanza 3, line 13:  This device informs the reader/ audience that a threat exists and that it comes in the dark of night.

Stanza 3, lines 14 – 15:  It is implied that the threat is a soldier through the term ‘boot of steel’. The ‘slender grass’ is the innocent youth who is cut down and trampled by these ‘boots of steel’. The fact that we are given this information through the use of rhetorical question adds mystery and intrigue to the poem. IMPORTANT WORDS/ PHRASES

6. ‘All round the land brown beetles crawl about.’ Some variety of brown beetles are scavengers that feed on decaying or dead carcasses. Therefore, when the persona states that they crawl about, it implies that a lot of dead or decaying bodies exist in the land.

7. ‘season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.’ A season is an extended period of time. Therefore, the persona is telling his ‘love’ that it is a period of extreme sadness. This sadness is brought about by the ‘dark metal’, which can be literally interpreted as vehicles of war.

8. ‘man of death’  The man of death, in this context, is the soldier.

9. ‘Watching you sleep’ Sleep is a state of extreme vulnerability. This is the case because when one falls asleep, they fall into unconsciousness, which equates to a state of defenselessness. The fact that the man of death, ie soldier, watches the persona’s ‘love’ while he/she sleeps, implies that this person is not only vulnerable, but in extreme danger.

10. ‘aiming at your dream.’ The man of death’s purpose is to destroy the persona’s ‘love’s’ dreams, or desires.

MOOD/ ATMOSPHERE  The mood of the poem is a sad one. The persona is giving his ‘love’ sad and depressing news.

TONE –The tone of the poem is also a sad one.

THEMES – Racism, War, Oppression, Dreams and Aspirations, places.

10 thoughts on “This is the Dark Time, My Love -Martin Carter”

you eight???????>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<:::::::::::<<<<<>>>>>>>>

Love it and this website overall

So, why does this not properly review the themes?

No, you are not!!!

what did you learn from this poem

You right inna

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

24/7 writing help on your phone

To install StudyMoose App tap and then “Add to Home Screen”

This Is The Dark Time My Love

Save to my list

Remove from my list

• This is the Dark Time, My Love - Poetry Foundation
• This is the Dark Time, My Love - KenazBook

This Is The Dark Time My Love. (2016, Mar 05). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/this-is-the-dark-time-my-love-essay

"This Is The Dark Time My Love." StudyMoose , 5 Mar 2016, https://studymoose.com/this-is-the-dark-time-my-love-essay

StudyMoose. (2016). This Is The Dark Time My Love . [Online]. Available at: https://studymoose.com/this-is-the-dark-time-my-love-essay [Accessed: 4 Sep. 2024]

"This Is The Dark Time My Love." StudyMoose, Mar 05, 2016. Accessed September 4, 2024. https://studymoose.com/this-is-the-dark-time-my-love-essay

"This Is The Dark Time My Love," StudyMoose , 05-Mar-2016. [Online]. Available: https://studymoose.com/this-is-the-dark-time-my-love-essay. [Accessed: 4-Sep-2024]

StudyMoose. (2016). This Is The Dark Time My Love . [Online]. Available at: https://studymoose.com/this-is-the-dark-time-my-love-essay [Accessed: 4-Sep-2024]

• Dark, Dark Were The Tunnels Pages: 4 (1003 words)
• Dark Energy, Dark Matter Pages: 5 (1291 words)
• The Enigma of Dark Matter and Dark Energy Pages: 5 (1227 words)
• Optimizing Time: A Reflective Journey in College Time Management Pages: 4 (909 words)
• An Exploration of Time in "The Time Keeper" Pages: 3 (803 words)
• Work Life Balance of Women Wmployees and their Time Management and Quality of Time Pages: 3 (892 words)
• Time Travelling And Time Machine in Primer Movie Pages: 2 (553 words)
• Importance Of Time Management And Good Use Of Time Pages: 5 (1256 words)
• Themes & Motifs of Time, Love & Morality in Siddhartha by Herman Hesse Pages: 7 (2027 words)
• No Faith, No Love, No Time, and Dr. Lazaro Pages: 6 (1580 words)

👋 Hi! I’m your smart assistant Amy!

Don’t know where to start? Type your requirements and I’ll connect you to an academic expert within 3 minutes.

This is the Dark Time, My Love Poem By Martin Carter Summary Notes and Line by Line Explanation in English

Introduction.

The poem �This is the Dark Time, My Love� is a patriotic poem written by Martin Carter. In this poem Carter describes the time as a dark time, which means a time full of sadness. The poet describes a time full of war and oppression for the country. The poem describes the struggle of his country, especially during the British colonization of Guyana in 1953.

About the poet

The poem is divided into three quatrains. A quart rain is a stanza consisting of four lines.

The speaker is speaking to his �love� and telling them that their country is covered in darkness and sad times. Here the �Love� can be a woman that he loves or he could also be referring to his country as his love and telling it about the social and political state of the land. In the next line the poet says that the land is covered with brown beetles. Here the �brown beetles� symbolize soldiers and how the land is crawling with them. This creates an atmosphere of war. In the next lines, the poet shows how even nature is reflecting the dark mood of the land. �The shining sun� and �red flowers� are a symbol of optimism and happiness. But the poet says that both of them have hidden themselves. Both the sun and the flowers are mourning what is happening in the country.

In this stanza the time is described as a season of destruction and tears. The �dark metal� in these lines stands for the metal of machinery and weapons. They likely refer to the tanks and missiles used in wars. In the next lines the speaker puts together two completely contrasting concepts and creates irony when he describes the dark time as a �festival of guns� and �carnival of misery�. This is done to emphasize the violence, death and helplessness of the situation. The people around carry the emotions of disparate and anxiousness on their faces while looking at the circumstances around them. The �men� can be both the countrymen and the soldiers.

In the final stanza the speaker asks some rhetorical questions. He asks who is walking during the night of these dark times. Who is trampling the grass with his steel boots. These questions lead to the revelation of the man being Death. The speaker says that it is the man of death who is invading their homes and country and as his love sleeps the man of death aims to destroy her dreams and aspirations.

Throughout the poem, we can see the essence of resistance of the poet towards the colonization of his country. He addresses the poem to his love, which could be the personification of his country or a woman that he loves or his fellow countrymen. The poet wants to warn his love about the impending doom and the destruction happening in the country. He mourns the loss of the freedom and independence of the land which has now been invaded by a strange man, the man of death.

Related Posts:

This is the Dark Time, My Love

by Martin Carter

This is the dark time, my love,

All round the land brown beetles crawl about.

The shining sun is hidden in the sky.

Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow.

This is the dark time , my love.

It is the season of oppression, dark metal and tears.

It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery.

Every where the faces of men are strained and anxious.

Who comes walking in the dark night time?

Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass?

It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader

Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream

What is the poem about?

Who is the speaker in the poem?

Identify all literary devices in the poem and comment on their effectiveness and use in the poem.

Identify the theme of the poem

Identify any important words or phrases in the poem and comment on their meaning

What is the mood of the poem?

What is the tone of the poem?

The persona speaks to someone that he cares for. He tells this person that this is the dark time, which is, in essence, a time of sadness. It is implied, by certain key terms; such as ‘dark metal’, that it is a time of war. The persona warns his ‘love’ that it is a dark, sad time.

LITERARY DEVICES

Stanza 1, line 1 & stanza 2, line 7: The repetition of this phrase highlights that there is something seriously amiss. The persona is telling his ‘love’ that this is a sad and terrible time.

PERSONIFICATION

This device emphasizes the sad tone of the poem. This is the case because flowers are usually associated with feelings of happiness and cheerfulness. Therefore, if the flowers – ambassadors of joy – are sad, then it highlights how really sad the times have become.

Line 2, stanza 1: 'brown beetles crawl about' - The poet compares soldiers to brown beetles because of their uniform and how they may seem is you were to view them from afar or from above.

OXYMORON (for contrast)

The contrast in this device is startling. The terms ‘festival’ and ‘carnival’ not only describes fun and festivity, but also a large amount of each. Both words are associated with huge crowds. This emphasizes how terrible the times have become because guns and misery are plentiful.

RHETORICAL QUESTION

Stanza 3, line 9: This device informs the reader/ audience that a threat exists and that it comes in the dark of night.

Stanza 3, line 10: It is implied that the threat is a soldier through the term ‘boot of steel’. The ‘slender grass’ is the innocent youth who is cut down and trampled by these ‘boots of steel’. The fact that we are given this information through the use of rhetorical question adds mystery and intrigue to the poem.

IMPORTANT WORDS/ PHRASES

‘All round the land brown beetles crawl about.’

Some variety of brown beetles are scavengers that feed on decaying or dead carcasses. Therefore, when the persona states that they crawl about, it implies that a lot of dead or decaying bodies exist in the land.

‘season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.’

A season is an extended period of time. Therefore, the persona is telling his ‘love’ that it is a period of extreme sadness. This sadness is brought about by the ‘dark metal’, which can be literally interpreted as vehicles of war.

‘man of death’

The man of death, in this context, is the soldier.

‘Watching you sleep’

Sleep is a state of extreme vulnerability. This is the case because when one falls asleep, they fall into unconsciousness, which equates to a state of defenselessness. The fact that the man of death, ie. soldier, watches the persona’s ‘love’ while he/she sleeps, implies that this person is not only vulnerable, but in extreme danger.

‘aiming at your dream.’

The man of death’s purpose is to destroy the persona’s ‘love’s’ dreams, or desires.

MOOD/ ATMOSPHERE

The mood of the poem is a sad one. The persona is giving his ‘love’ sad and depressing news.

The tone of the poem is also a sad one.

Aspirations

Support our Racial Equity Journalism

Amsterdam News has been reporting the news of the day from a Black perspective for 113 years. Donors who choose to give monthly or annually will receive Amsterdam News’ Weekly E-Edition and acclaimed weekday newsletter Editorially Black to their inbox!

Thanks for your contribution!

New York Amsterdam News

The New Black View

‘This Is The Dark Time, My Love’

Share this:

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
• Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

Sign up for our acclaimed free weekday newsletter Editorially Black

Get the top Racial Equity stories of the day from one of America’s most influential oldest continuously published Black newspapers, serving the nation’s largest Black and brown community. Includes powerful reporting from Word In Black. Sign up to stay connected.

Back in 1954, my favorite Guyanese poet, and later my creative writing lecturer, Martin Carter, published “Poems of Resistance,” that included the poem that later became famous: “This Is The Dark Time, My Love.”

“This is the dark time, my love,

It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.

It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery.

Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.”

The words are as pertinent today for the immigrant, and especially the Caribbean immigrant communities in New York City, as it was in 1950s Guyana.

It is a dark time for the many Caribbean and other immigrant families, including of frontline workers in the MTA, in hospitals, nursing homes and more, who have lost so many to coronavirus and whose tearful goodbye is now being done via Zoom, as they try hard to deal with the pain of the loss in isolation.

It is a dark time for the immigrant nannies and domestic workers who have been let go from their live-in jobs and have no unemployment insurance, Payroll Protection Program or stimulus check to help them pay their bills or buy food.

It is a dark time for the many Caribbean immigrant businesses in Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx who don’t qualify for PPP or can’t figure out how to access any help to survive.

It is a dark time for the Caribbean dollar van industry that is struggling to keep afloat.

It is a dark time for the many Caribbean restaurants that are now forced to only offer take-out services as they see fewer customers and don’t know if they can keep meeting the overheads to stay open.

It is a dark time for the event producers of music events that are a signature of the Caribbean American community, and the musicians whose performances have now ground to a halt and there is no money flowing in and “no hustle nah keep no more.”

It is a dark time for the pan yards, mas bands and carnival association who would be readying for the summer season.

It is a dark time for the elderly and home bound, whose weekly church outing is now halted, and they must depend on the goodwill of family and friends to get basic commodities like food.

And it is a hard time for many undocumented workers who are facing a double whammy, as there is no government assistance due to COVID-19 as the CARES Act does not include them.

The bottom line is there is no safety net for many immigrants who now have no idea how they will pay their rent or mortgage or buy food and pay their other bills, and the leadership does not seem to care.

Yet, no group has suffered as dramatic a reversal of fortune as immigrant workers and immigrant small business owners and self-employed persons in this community. The foreign-born immigrant community’s unemployment rate was 2.7% a year ago, even lower than the rate for native-born Americans. But the Migration Policy Institute found that 20% of the U.S. workers in vulnerable industries now laid off are immigrants, even though they only make up 17% of the civilian workforce.

Caribbean immigrant Irwine Clare, Sr., OD, summed it up succinctly last week when he said that while “struggles and challenges are nothing new” to the Caribbean and wider immigrant communities, the impact of COVID-19 “pales in comparison” to what has come before.

Yet, in all the darkness there is hope in the many small acts of kindness being extended by individuals and small organizations and groups who are showing up, raising money and donating groceries and small amounts of cash. They are the real silver lining in the dark cloud and the true heart of God in all this darkness.

As Clare wisely noted: “We are praying people accustomed to struggle and we will survive this too.”

In the meantime: “This is the dark time my love … Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.”

The writer is publisher of NewsAmericasNow

We've recently sent you an authentication link. Please, check your inbox!

Sign in with a password below, or sign in using your email .

Get a code sent to your email to sign in, or sign in using a password .

Enter the code you received via email to sign in, or sign in using a password .

Subscribe to our newsletters:

• Word In Black Newsletter Get daily news about our communities' most pressing issues from our national news platform.
• Editorially Black Newsletter Get the top racial equity stories each weekday from America's oldest Black newspaper, Amsterdam News.

Sign in with your email

Lost your password?

Try a different email

Send another code

Sign in with a password

By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.

This is the dark time, my love

This is the dark time, my love lyrics.

How to Format Lyrics:

• Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
• Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
• Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
• Use italics ( <i>lyric</i> ) and bold ( <b>lyric</b> ) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
• If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

Martin Carter was widely considered the greatest of the Guyanese poets.

This poem focuses on a speaker, describing death and destruction, and how it affects the relationship the speaker has with their lover.

Though Carter is not necessarily a Modernist, he uses certain techniques I think the Modernists would have celebrated.

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

Genius is the world’s biggest collection of song lyrics and musical knowledge

Think and Write for CSEC English A and B

This is the Dark Time, My Love

This is the Dark Time, My Love Martin Carter This is the dark time, my love, All round the land brown beetles crawl about. The shining sun is hidden in the sky Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow. This is the dark time, my love, It is the season of oppression, dark metal,…

This is the Dark Time, My Love

Martin Carter

This is the dark time, my love,

All round the land brown beetles crawl about.

The shining sun is hidden in the sky

Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow.

It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.

It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery.

Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.

Who comes walking in the dark night time?

Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass?

It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader

Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream.

Carter writes of the pain and suffering that comes with war. He speaks directly to the struggles that Guyana faced under British colonization in 1953. Britain was quick to crush the uprising of the people when the constitution was suspended. The love that the persona has can be love for country or love for a woman.

There is a sense of gloom in the atmosphere due to the oppression of the war and the weapons of terror. The speaker alludes to the gloom in the absence of sunlight and the flowers that are drooping. The people are despondent and anxiety-stricken and are visibly oppressed by the results of the war. Death (and war) is personified as a man who tramples not only nature, but the peace and dreams of the persona’s country underfoot.

Pessimistic

“This is the dark time, my love,”

The speaker starts by presenting the gloomy nature of the war in the country. The period is marked by darkness and leads to the feeling of the approaching doom and adverse outcomes. The line suggests that speaker is referring to his ‘love,’ which could simply be his lover, or his country.

“All round the land brown beetles crawl about.”

This refers to the British soldiers who occupied the country at the time. The poet uses alliteration in the ‘brown beetles’ to refer to the soldiers who filled the landscape and thereby create an atmosphere that reflects the war.

“The shining sun is hidden in the sky/ Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow.”

Nature reflects the gloomy mood as the shining sun is hidden in the sky. In other words, the sun does not shine in the sky which suggests that the gloom also stems from the absence of sunlight. The sun is hidden, and this suggests that the hope of the people is hidden. The poet further reinforces the mood of the poem when he personifies the red flowers that ‘bend their heads in awful sorrow.’ The flowers are given the quality of emotion and they reflect the sorrow that the persona and the people feel. The flowers also mourn the dark times of death and sorrow. In addition, the poet mentions colour once in the poem and it is the colour of the flowers. They are red and one could say that the red represents the bloodshed that occurred during war.

“This is the dark time, my love, It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.”

The persona gives a description of the dark time and alludes to a season that is synonymous with endless oppression, the dark metal of the machines of war and sadness. “Dark” is repeated to show the pessimistic outlook as well as an atmosphere of terror. The ‘dark metal’ could represent the tankers and guns which oppress the people in the persona’s country.

“It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery. Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.”

The poet uses two oxymorons where he contradicts two ideas in close succession. He refers to this dark time of war as a festival that one can easily associate with joy and celebration and guns which are machines of terror, war, violence, death, and oppression. This is contradictory and yet the comparison reminds the reader of the incompatible nature of festival and war. The poem continues with a description of a carnival that is associated with fun and the joy of children and misery which reflects a terrible emotion of helplessness and despair. The persona speaks to the strained emotions in the faces of everyone around him- including his own countrymen and the soldiers.

“Who comes walking in the dark night time? Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass?”

The poet uses rhetorical questions that lead to the personification of war and death. It hints at something being closely related to dark times such as these, who has a ‘boot of steel.’ One sees the oppressive and abusive effect war has on not only the environment but on the people of the country. It crushes the grass underfoot, showing deliberate disregard for nature and opting instead to fulfill selfish goals with needless death and suffering.

“It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream.”

The poet uses personification to show death as a strange invader to the persona’s country. This man of death is said to not only crush nature under his steel boot but also watch the persona’s love sleep and aim at destroying her dream. If the love he refers to represents his country, then the “man of death” aims to wreck the chances of realizing the dreams that come with independence and freedom. The war and conflict come from the soldiers invading the country. They seek to crush the resistance and the attempts at freedom as well as the dreams and optimism of the people of the country overall.

Share this:

Leave a comment Cancel reply

Clowns, fools, and disguises in shakespeare’s plays, csec english a paper 3/2 explained with sample paper, the main characters and themes, understanding the stagecraft in shakespeare’s “twelfth night”, discover more from think and write for csec english a and b.

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Type your email…

Continue reading

• Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
• Subscribe Subscribed
• Copy shortlink
• Report this content
• View post in Reader
• Manage subscriptions
• Collapse this bar

This Is the Dark Time My Love

This is the dark time, my love, All round the land brown beetles crawl about. The shining sun is hidden in the sky Red flowers bend their heads in awful sorrow. This is the dark time, my love, It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears. It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery. Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious. Who comes walking in the dark night time? Whose boot of steel tramps down the slender grass? It is the man of death, my love, the strange invader Watching you sleep and aiming at your dream.

• What Sparks Poetry: Read how this poem inspired Vahni Capildeo to begin writing poetry

Feature Date

• November 25, 2019
• What Sparks Poetry

Selected By

Share this poem, print this poem.

Copyright © 2006 by Martin Carter All rights reserved. Reproduced by Poetry Daily with permission.

Featured Poet

The Guyanese poet Martin Carter (1927-97) was one of the foremost Caribbean writers of the 20th century. Twice imprisoned by the colonial government of British Guiana during the Emergency in the 1950s, he became a minister in Guyana’s first independent government during the 60s, representing his country at the United Nations, but resigned in disillusionment after three years to live ‘simply as a poet, remaining with the people’. He was one of the first Caribbean poets to write about slavery, Amerindian history and Indian Indentureship in relation to contemporary concerns. Wise, angry and hopeful, Carter’s poetry voices a life lived in times of public and private crisis.

Featured Translator

Northumberland England

• Featured book

"The work in University of Hunger ranges from lyrics to arguments to riddles. Carter’s poetry, known by heart by his fellow Guyanese, deserves to live deep in global memory. Responsive to the white dust and red flowers of his homeland, for Carter the political is personal. Jailed for his part in the independence struggle, he foxed surveillance photographers by displaying poems on his home. Whether in tenderness for ‘green, green love’ or in furious search of a ‘comrade stargazer’, he desires a freedom that would write a "happier alphabet'." —Vahni Capildeo, Reader's Digest

"A major contribution to Guyanese scholarship. This sets the standard for editions of Caribbean poetry." —David Dabydeen

"His impulse was always lyrical, he was a great reciter, he had a great voice, he had a great joy in the sound of the poem…the example of his work was phenomenal…West Indian literature even in English is totally underestimated, totally. The literature is astonishing, the quality is astonishingly high. And Martin’s position in all this is special" —Derek Walcott

Poetry Daily Depends on You

With your support, we make reading the best contemporary poetry a treasured daily experience.  Consider a contribution today.

POETRY DAILY MS 3E4 4400 University Drive Fairfax, VA 22030

Copyright Information

Terms and Conditions

Privacy Policy

Poetry Daily MS 3E4 4400 University Drive Fairfax, VA 22030

SUBSCRIBE TO POETRY DAILY’S NEWSLETTER

Subscribe to our daily newsletter to receive the daily poem, poetry news and features, and related opportunities from our sponsors via email. You can opt-out or manage your subscription preferences at any time.

Donate to Poetry Daily Today

It is only because of individuals like you that we are able to promote contemporary poets, translators, presses, and journals each and every day. A gift of any amount right now will enable us to continue our mission.

Click here to donate

Trending Topics

• Hersh Goldberg-Polin

Get JTA in your inbox

By submitting the above I agree to the privacy policy and terms of use of JTA.org

At the Jerusalem synagogue where Hersh Goldberg-Polin danced in life, grief and anger reign after his death

JERUSALEM — Three hundred and thirty-two days after Hersh Goldberg-Polin danced in the courtyard next to his Jerusalem synagogue on the holiday of Simchat Torah, more than a thousand people gathered there in grief and prayer to mourn his murder by Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

During the Sunday night vigil, the courtyard railings were lined with oversized yellow ribbons to symbolize advocacy for the hostages, Hapoel Jerusalem soccer flags — the 23-year-old’s favorite team — and posters that read, “We love you, stay strong, survive,” a mantra coined by his mother, Rachel Goldberg-Polin.

Just hours earlier, one of the posters had been hanging over the balcony of the home of Shira Ben-Sasson, a leader of Hakhel, the Goldberg-Polins’ egalitarian congregation in the Baka neighborhood of Jerusalem.

“We were sure we would take it down when he came home,” Ben-Sasson said.

The community wanted to unite while respecting the Goldberg-Polins’ desire for privacy, she said, prompting them to organize the prayer gathering.

“But it’s like a Band-Aid or giving first aid, it’s what you do in an emergency. I don’t know how we go on after this,” she said.

A covered courtyard at the Hakhel congregation was filled with mourners the day after Hersh Goldberg-Polin, whose family are prominent members, was found to have been killed in Gaza. Hundreds of other people crowded outside the gates, Sept. 1, 2024. (Deborah Danan)

She added that the community, which has a large contingent of English-speaking immigrants, was not prepared for the High Holidays, which begin in about a month. She said, “Seeing his empty seat is hard.”

For Ben-Sasson, who wore a T-shirt bearing the Talmudic dictum “There is no greater mitzvah than the redeeming of captives,” the tragedy is especially painful because, she said, it could have been avoided with a ceasefire agreement that freed hostages.

“Hersh was alive 48 hours ago. We think a deal could have saved him. There is no military solution to this,” she said.

That feeling of bereavement, often mixed with betrayal, pervaded gatherings across Israel on Sunday, as the country struggled with the news that six hostages who may have been freed in an agreement were now dead as negotiations continue to stall. Speakers at protests in Tel Aviv blamed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who himself apologized for not getting the hostages out alive but blamed Hamas for obstructing a deal. The country’s labor union, the Histadrut, has called a national strike on Monday to demand a deal.

A rare early September rain lashed parts of Israel on Sunday, leading to a widespread interpretation: God, too, was weeping.

Some at the Jerusalem gathering, including the relative of another former hostage, said Netanyahu had chosen defeating Hamas over freeing the captives.

Josef Avi Yair Engel’s grandson Ofir was released from Hamas captivity in November. He paid tribute to Hersh Goldberg-Polin, murdered in captivity, in Jerusalem, Sept. 1, 2024. (Deborah Danan)

Josef Avi Yair Engel, whose grandson Ofir, 18, was released from Hamas captivity in November during that month’s ceasefire deal, expressed shock over Hersh’s murder but said he was not surprised, given the wartime policies of Netanyahu’s government.

“We knew months ago this was going to happen. Bibi’s formula, to dismantle Hamas and return the hostages, wasn’t logical. It’s an either/or situation,” Engel said, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname. “He’s tearing the country apart. I’m afraid that in the coming months there won’t be a state at all.”

Engel said he felt a close bond with Hersh’s father Jon Polin, not only because of their joint activism in the hostage families’ tent outside the Prime Minister’s Residence, but also because of their shared identity as Jerusalemites.

“There aren’t many of us in the hostage circle,” he said. “We’re like family.”

Sarah Mann, who did not know the family personally, said the weekend’s tragedy reminded her of Oct. 7.

“This day has sparks of the seventh, which created numbness and an inability to talk. Just complete shock,” she said.

Mourners left notes at a gathering at Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s family synagogue in Jerusalem. Many of the messages used the Hebrew word for “sorry.” (Deborah Danan)

Part of the reason for that, Mann said, was Rachel, who she described as a “force of faith.” Goldberg-Polin’s mother emerged as the most prominent advocate for the hostages globally and became a symbol in her own right as she crisscrossed the world calling for her son’s freedom.

“Millions of people around the world held onto her. Once that was cut, people’s ability to hold onto faith was knocked out today. But even though this has shattered us, we need to keep holding onto God,” Mann said.

For Susi Döring Preston, the day called to mind was not Oct. 7 but Yom Kippur, and its communal solemnity.

She said she usually steers clear of similar war-related events because they are too overwhelming for her.

“Before I avoided stuff like this because I guess I still had hope. But now is the time to just give in to needing to be around people because you can’t hold your own self up any more,” she said, tears rolling down her face. “You need to feel the humanity and hang onto that.”

Like so many others, Döring Preston paid tribute to the Goldberg-Polins’ tireless activism. “They needed everyone else’s strength but we drew so much strength from them and their efforts, “she said. “You felt it could change the outcome. But war is more evil than good. I think that’s the crushing thing. You can do everything right, but the outcome is still devastating.”

Guy Gordon, with his daughter Maya, added a broken heart to the piece of tape he has worn daily to mark the number of days since the hostage crisis began, Sept. 1, 2024. (Deborah Danan)

Guy Gordon, a member of Hakhel who moved to Israel from Dublin, Ireland, in the mid-1990s, said the efforts towards ensuring Hersh’s safe return have been an anchor for the community during the war. The community knew him as the family described him in its announcement of his funeral on Tuesday, as “a child of light, love and peace” who enjoyed exploring the world and coming home to his family, including his parents and younger sisters, Leebie and Orly.

“It gave us something to hope for, and pray for and to demonstrate for,” he said. “We had no choice but to be unreasonably optimistic. Tragically it transpired that he survived until the very end.”

Gordon, like many others in the crowd, wore a piece of duct tape marked with the number of days since Oct. 7 — a gesture initiated by Goldberg-Polin’s mother. Unlike on previous days, though, his tape also featured a broken red heart beside the number.

Nadia Levene, a family friend, also reflected on the improbability of Hersh’s survival.

“He did exactly what his parents begged him to do. He was strong. He did survive. And look what happened,” Levene said.

She hailed Rachel Goldberg-Polin’s “unwavering strength and belief in God,” adding, “There were times I lost faith. I suppose I was angry with God. But she just kept inspiring us all to pray, pray, pray.”

Leah Silver of Jerusalem examined stickers showing Rachel Goldberg-Polin’s mantra for her son Hersh, who was murdered in captivity in Gaza, at a gathering after Hersh’s death, Sept. 1, 2024. (Deborah Danan)

Jerusalem resident Leah Silver rejected politicizing the hostages’ deaths.

“Everything turns political so quickly. I came here because I felt that before all the protests, we need to just mourn for a moment and to pray. And show respect for each other,” she said. “We’ve become confused about who the enemy is. It’s very sad.”

But not everyone at the gathering joined in to sing Israel’s national anthem at the closing of the prayer gathering.

“I’m sorry, I can’t sing ‘Hatikvah,'” Reza Green, a Baka resident who did not know the Goldberg-Polins personally, said. “I’m too angry. We shouldn’t be here.”

Share this:

Recommended from jta.

Meta panel rules that ‘from the river to the sea’ is not inherently antisemitic

‘I’m gutted,’ Doug Emhoff says about murdered hostages at Washington synagogue vigil

Engagement in campus Jewish life spiked after Oct. 7 but has since dropped down somewhat, Tufts study finds

US Justice Department files criminal charges against Hamas, spurred by Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s murder

As Israel endured a difficult weekend at home, its athletes won several Paralympic medals, bringing Paris total to 7

Hapoel Jerusalem, Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s favorite soccer club, mourns the death of ‘our friend in the stands’