Dedication

Dedication by Wole Soyinka
for Moremi, 1963

Earth will not share the rafter's envy; dung floors
Break, not the gecko's slight skin, but its fall
Taste this soil for death and plumb her deep for life

As this yam, wholly earthed, yet a living tuber
To the warmth of waters, earthed as springs
As roots of baobab, as the hearth.

The air will not deny you. Like a top
Spin you on the navel of the storm, for the hoe
That roots the forests plows a path for squirrels.

Be ageless as dark peat, but only that rain's
Fingers, not the feet of men, may wash you over.
Long wear the sun's shadow; run naked to the night.

Peppers green and red—child—your tongue arch
To scorpion tail, spit straight return to danger's threats
Yet coo with the brown pigeon, tendril dew between your lips.

Shield you like the flesh of palms, skyward held
Cuspids in thorn nesting, insealed as the heart of kernel—
A woman's flesh is oil—child, palm oil on your tongue

Is suppleness to life, and wine of this gourd
From self-same timeless run of runnels as refill
Your podlings, child, weaned from yours we embrace

Earth's honeyed milk, wine of the only rib.
Now roll your tongue in honey till your cheeks are
Swarming honeycombs—your world needs sweetening, child.

Camwood round the heart, chalk for flight
Of blemish—see? it dawns!—antimony beneath
Armpits like a goddess, and leave this taste

Long on your lips, of salt, that you may seek
None from tears. This, rain-water, is the gift
Of gods—drink of its purity, bear fruits in season.

Fruits then to your lips: haste to repay
The debt of birth. Yield man-tides like the sea
And ebbing, leave a meaning of the fossilled sands.


This poem is one of my favorites in its comparison of the natural and spiritual connection we all have with the earth. The imagery is so beautiful, and makes me feel as though I can almost taste the African setting he describes. It is just one of those beautiful literary pieces that touches every part of you at once.
As for the title relating to the poem, I think the whole story of the poem is about the life cycle, and the bringing of a child into this world. It starts with the consummation of the child, and then the birth into this world of the child, this miracle created by love. It is all a prayer almost to the earth, and a dedication to the child. It sort of relates our all being of the earth, and we will return to the earth again.
He uses many poetical devices throughout the poem, including metaphors and a ton of imagery. One instance that stands out in my mind of a strong metaphor was the line in which he says, "your tongue arch/ to scorpion tail. . ." This beautiful metaphor relates the tongue of a screaming baby at birth to a scorpion tail when it flicks in fear while feeling threatened. It gives us this sense of the child being born with a venomous tongue, that will later on give the parents trouble- as well as providing this image of a flailing tongue of a baby as it clears its lungs and wails in fear of being brought into this world so suddenly. There are tons of examples of imagery, including the moment when he says, "Earth's honeyed milk, wine of the only rib/ Now role your tongue in honey till your cheeks are/ Swarming honeycombs- your world needs sweetening child. . ." In this we get this imagery of taste and touch and sight all in one, making my mouth water at the thought. We can taste this sweet, rare nectar that brings life, and is made solely for that baby. They are of course speaking of breast milk, the sweetness made for that child alone. We can touch the honey as our tongues role in it, and are cheeks fill with honeycombs. Wole does a beautiful job in placing these one after another, but not over doing all the emotions at once. He slips them in, enticing you on by this luring scent the whole poem seems to produce. They give this poem such depth and feeling, pressing us to think what he means, and see these strange literal images that attack our senses, and give us the emotions Wale wants us to feel.
Tone in this poem is joy and wonderment by the birth of a child, and this spiratural journey all involved in it can feel. He connects this miracle of life to the earth, and its fruits that it births forth, as a woman bears a child. The tone is gentle, and connects us to the ground, as if to feel nature being every part of this birth, just as it is every part of any animal or plant birth. He creates this earthy and joyful tone in many of his words, such as baobab, roots, rain, plumb her deep for life, season, fruits, and embrace. All giving us this sense of warm earth joining to bring forth this joyful occasion.