When Robert Frost became the first poet to read at the presidential inauguration of the United States in 1961, he was already a well-established poet.
When Robert Frost became the first poet to read at the presidential inauguration of the United States in 1961, he was already a well-established poet.
President John F. Kennedy said of the pivotal moment: “I felt he had something important to say to those of us who are occupied with the business of government, that he wouldremind us that we were dealing with life, of hopes and fears of millions of people.”
In South Africa, ailing poet Don Mattera took the stage in the Khayelitsha township last December to eulogise Nelson Mandela.
His voice joined in with many others in paying homage to the great statesman.
Poetry has long been intertwined with significant moments in history.
Its lyrical style and sharp lines represent the collective thought of people in a community.
“Even though most of my poems are written in Xhosa, I think the energy within those poems and the spirit of those words have power to be heard by anyone everywhere in the world,” said 26-year old Grahamstown performance poet, Thembani Onceya.
He is better known by his stage name Zion and performs his poetry in both isiXhosa and English.
Onceya has written and produced for the National Arts Festival, performed at open mic nights and other events throughout South Africa. He is a first year journalism student at Rhodes University.
There can be a reluctance amongst poets to pursue their art full-time. Today, proponents of poetry still struggle to rely on their creative works for a steady financial income.
“If you look at poetry like a job, then you will always hate it. I don’t intend to depend on poetry to bring in the money,” Onceya said.
On the other hand, Harry Owen, a Grahamstown poet and teacher originally from Liverpool, had spent the last 15 years as a fulltime poet.
“Poetry is not what I do, it’s who I am,” he said. “Although teaching is what brought in the bread and butter.
“Poetry doesn’t sell. However, you can make a living doing things associated with poetry like workshops or lectures, but that isn’t poetry itself,” he said.
Matters are complicated when money is associated with creative expression.
Owen said: “If you are being paid to produce poems, are you going to always say what you want to say or are you going to back off because you are being paid to do this and you don’t want to offend?”
Poet Ntokozo Mbokazi, a Rhodes BCom student said: “Money changes most things. The arts are one of those things that it could compromise. But there is a difference between being commissioned and doing something and then being given money for it.”
Mbokazi’s poetry was heavily influenced by hip hop culture. His focus is on the spoken word and live poetry performances.
“Performance poetry is something else. But it’s not considered in the same league as paying for a musician to be on stage,” said Mbokazi. “A lot of spoken word poets are also teachers and I think that speaks to the type of people they are.”
Poetry continues to thrive in Grahamstown with workshops and poetry sessions as well as performances by the likes of Zion and Mbokazi.
Reddits Poetry, a popular open-floor poetry event, is held on the last Friday of every month at Café D’Vine on New Street.
