(A PERSON IS A PERSON BECAUSE OF OTHER PEOPLE)

JEREMY CRONIN
 “Motho Ke Motho Ka Batho Babang” details a communication
between two prisoners who can see each other only in the
reflection of one handheld mirror.
 This is an apt metaphor for how difficult it is to look at any life
except indirectly.
 The poem’s title references a common African concept: ubuntu, a
belief in a healthy community as central to society.
 Culturally the individual is not as crucial as the whole of the
community.
 MOTHO KE MOTHO KA BATHO BABANG
(A Person is a Person Because of Other People)

By holding my mirror out of the window I see

Clear to the end of the passage
There's a person down there.
A prisoner polishing a door handle.
In the mirror I see him see
My face in the mirror,
I see the fingertips of his free hand
Bunch together, as if to make
An object the size of a badge
Which travels up to his forehead
The place of an imaginary cap.
(This means: A warder.)
Two fingers are extended in a vee
And wiggle like two antennae.
(He's being watched.)
A finger of his free hand makes a watch-hand's arc
On the wrist of his polishing arm without
Disrupting the slow-slow rhythm of his work.
(Later. Maybe, later we can speak.)
Hey! Wat maak jy daar?
– a voice from around the corner.
No. Just polishing baas.
He turns his back to me, now watch
His free hand, the talkative one,
Slips quietly behind
– Strength brother, it says,
In my mirror,
A black fist.
Born 12 september 1949 he is a South African writer, author, and
noted poet.
A long-time activist in politics, cronin is a member of the south
african communist party and a member of the national executive
committee of the african national congress.
He presently serves as the south african deputy minister of public
works.
Cronin was brought up in a middle-class white Roman
Catholic family in Rondebosch.
During adolescence he considered the idea of entering the
priesthood.
In 1968 Cronin won a bursary to study at the University of Cape Town,
where he became a member of the radical student society and was
subsequently recruited into the (banned) South African Communist
Party (SACP).
In the early 1970s, Cronin studied his masters in philosophy in France
and returned to South Africa, where he began lecturing in the
philosophy department of the University of Cape Town.
Cronin’s work in the propaganda unit of the SACP brought him to the
attention of the South African Bureau of State Security
He was arrested on charges under the Terrorism and Internal Security
Acts and tried in the Cape Town Supreme Court in September 1976.
The charges included conspiring with members of the African
National Congress (also a banned organisation) and the SACP,
Also for preparing and distributing pamphlets on these organisations’
behalf.
Cronin pleaded guilty to all charges and was sentenced to seven
years’ imprisonment (1976–1983), which he served in Pretoria.
His wife, Anne Marie, died of a brain tumour during his imprisonment.
This is a narrative poem that tells of an encounter between two
prisoners.
• One is in a cell, we can presume that it may be solitary confinement
as this was usual for political prisoners since this restricted the
amount of contact between them and the general prison population.
• The other is a prisoner who is cleaning the prison. At the time of
the interaction he is actually polishing a door handle.
A warden is present, though out of sight.
The prisoner in the cell is able to see what is happening by putting a
mirror through the window of his cell door and watching the other
man.
They “talk” by using signs that are not noticed by the watching warder.
Their “conversation” is interrupted by the warden who asks what is
going on.
Before leaving the working prisoner encourages the other to have
“strength” in the situation he finds himself in.
The main point of the poem is that as an isolated prisoner he has no
contact with others and is ignored and dehumanised, this can be very
demoralising.
By being recognised by another human his “humanity” is validated
and this seemingly trivial interaction takes on a very different meaning.
Highlighting the fact that interpersonal Again always an
contact was not allowed and the only way obstruction between
to communicate is through people. This
“intermediary” emphasises the
isolation and the lack
Is clarity possible By holding my mirror out of the window I see of human contact.
considering the Clear to the end of the passage
barriers to There’s a person down there.
communication. No name given but
Could be using A prisoner polishing a door handle. described as a
“clear” in a In the mirror I see him see “human” first and a
colloquial way. My face in the mirror, “prisoner” second.
I see the fingertips of his free hand
The do not see one Bunch together, as if to make
another face to face An object the size of a badge Description of the
but through conversation
reflections in the Which travels up to his forehead
mirror. The place of an imaginary cap.
Brackets used to
(This means: A warder.) supply extra
information
Prison guard (translation)
 Two fingers are extended in a vee Describing
conversation
And wiggle like two antennae.
Translation (He's being watched.)
A finger of his free hand makes a watch-hand’s arc
On the wrist of his polishing arm without
Disrupting the slow-slow rhythm of his work.

There is no need to hurry. The

repetition of “slow” more of
a colloquialism than anything
else
 Translation
The question is
what kind of
What are you (Later. Maybe, later we can speak.) conversation would
doing? Hey! Wat maak jy daar? this be? Verbal or
-- a voice from around the corner. sign?
Spoken response, and No. Just polishing baas.
the use of title when
addressing the
He turns his back to me, now watch
Unseen voice only those
warder. (Lying to His free hand, the talkative one, “in power” are given a
authority Slips quietly behind voice?
– Strength brother, it says,
In my mirror, Not listen, ties in with the context
The hand seen as A black fist. of the poem. Extending an
an entity of its invitation to the reader to be part
own. The message Universal sign of
black power and of the conversation and subterfuge.
of support and
hope. opposition to
oppression.
 This poem captures the scene of one prisoner communicating
discreetly with another, under the watchful eye of a warder. The
cleverness of the participants is shown as they find ways to
maintain human contact, communicating with sign language in
defiance of the deprivation of imprisonment.

 As readers, we are invited to imagine how the human connection

described in the scene would have provided the speaker with
considerable comfort, strength and encouragement. This scene
demonstrates Ubuntu in action.
 A noticeable feature of this poem is its visual layout. The narrative is
provided on the left, while a ‘translation’ is provided in brackets on
the right.

 The format of this translation or explanation is varied as the poem

progresses. The first insertion in line 12 announces itself as an
explanation, the second (line 15) and third (line 19) give the
explanation directly, while the last insertions lose the brackets, as if
the reader has now learned the poem’s language and no longer needs
them.
 This poem uses punctuation and typography (the way in which it is printed
or set out) to convey the poet’s message.
 Notice the poet’s use of italics for different purposes, as well as the use of
dashes. The use of italics in lines 20 and 22 seems to indicate direct
speech. It is most effective that ‘Strength brother’ (line 26) is also written
this way, as the two prisoners are communicating so effectively they may as
well be using direct speech.
 The use of the present tense makes the content feel immediate, and in the
last stages of the poem, as we are instructed to watch, we feel as though we
are sharing the cell and watching the signals with the speaker.
 It could be considered ironic that although this is a poem
without formal ‘sound devices’, it is centred on sound and
the lack of it. Cronin refers to a ‘talkative’ (line 24) hand
which, of course, is completely silent.

 The poem is commenting on sound by emphasising its

absence.
1. Provide an explanation for the prisoner’s use of the mirror.
The mirror allows the prisoner to see and receive communication beyond the
restricted vision of the cell’s confines.

2. Find evidence in the poem that prisoners are kept occupied with time-
wasting chores.
A prisoner is busy ‘polishing a door handle’ (line 4), which is hardly a crucial
task.

3. Explain the link between an ‘imaginary cap’ (line 11) and a guard.
The signal of bunched fingers to the forehead, miming a badge on an
‘imaginary cap’ (line 11), is visual ‘shorthand’ to indicate the presence of a
guard.
4. Discuss Cronin’s use of different languages in the poem.

Cronin uses conventional language to communicate with the reader. The

poem incorporates a description of the sign language used by prisoners to
communicate silently to one another, with the explanations of the visual
gestures being interpreted in parenthesis. The guard’s authoritative demand
in Afrikaans and the submissive spoken response are indicated by the use of
italics. Thus, this unnatural spoken response are indicated by the use of
italics. This unnatural world is conveyed through the use of various
communication tools.
5. The poem is written in an informal style. How does the style contribute
to the meaning of the poem?

The informal, colloquial register of the narrative makes the poem seem like
the speaker is speaking directly to the reader; the direct speech captures the
speech patterns used and so makes the exchange authentic and convincing.
6. This poem illustrates truths about the human condition. Explore how the
poem shows the cruelty of isolation as a form of punishment, and why it
was a favoured treatment of political prisoners.

The human need for communication with fellow beings is demonstrated in the
poem as prisoners would risk the wrath and punishment of breaking the rules
just to have some contact with one another. This demonstrates just how cruel,
unnatural and difficult it must be to endure the deprivation of the isolated
prisoner. This form of punishment is favoured for political prisoners as it
would prohibit the ‘subversive’ ideas that such prisoners would want to spread.
7. Assess whether the poem is an appropriate demonstration of the concept
of ubuntu.

The poem is an excellent demonstration of the concept of ubuntu as we see

how the isolated prisoner only feels fully human through the connection with
another. The fellow prisoner is also aware of this and is prepared to risk
unpleasant consequences for his defiance in reaching out to a fellow prisoner.
1. How does the title reflect the message of the poem? (6)

2. Discuss how the poet creates a sense of alienation an isolation

in the poem. substantiate your answer from the text. (4)

3. Is the use of colloquial language in this poem effective? Give a

reason for your answer. (2)

4. How does the poet include the reader near the end of the poem? (2)

5. Discuss why this poem may be both humanist and subversive at

the same time? (4)

6. What is the tone of this poem? give a reason for your response. (2)