An African Thunderstorm Analysis, All Levels

A tharva
1st Level
Plot
This poem is a free verse poem, as it does not have any rhymes or a specific pattern. This poem
is a highly descriptive poem about an African thunderstorm. This poem is composed of two
large stanzas, each of them containing a different perspective of the storm. In the first stanza,
David Rubadiri describes the nature of the storm as it is approaching the little village. We learn
that the storm is extremely dangerous, as it is exceedingly high in speed and magnitude. The
second stanza then gives us an insight on the effects of the violent storm when it arrives in the
village. We then learn the thunderstorm causes chaos in all the little households in the villages,
as mothers are trying to protect their children and vital belongings. As the thunderstorm causes
mass destruction, Rubadiri ends the poem at the climax of the storm, which keeps the readers
in suspense.
Setting
This poem takes place in an African village. We know this because the poem itself indicates that
the storm is African, and on line 16, Rubadiri writes “In the village”. This tells us that the
environment surrounding the village must be very underdeveloped, meaning that the
surroundings must contain a lot of forestry. Based on this information, we can infer that the
storm will leave behind a lot of natural debris, such as branches and leaves from fallen/
damaged trees, as opposed to geometric debris (debris from man-made objects).
Characters
The Women: the women are first introduced on line 20, where we learn that the women are
very frightened of the incoming storm, which leads them to frantically gather their children and
their belongings. We also learn that the civilization that the women live in is extremely poor, as
on lines 27-29, David Rubadiri compares their clothes to tattered flags. This tells us that the
poor-quality material of their clothes was easily diminished by the external forces of the wind.
The Children: The children are mentioned very briefly in this poem, but they have a huge
significance in portraying the overall message of the poem. They are first mentioned in line 17,
where we learn that they are very delighted that the storm is here. By making the children act
in this way, David Rubadiri creates a contrast between the children and the adults, which
highlights how innocent and gullible the children are.
Context
On line 6, the thunderstorm is compared to a plague of flying locusts, which was a season that
most villages in Africa culturally looked forward to. By comparing the storm to this, David
Rubadiri highlights the period of time that this poem takes place in, as there was no way to
forecast the weather. Similarly, there was no way to forecast the period of time in which the
flying locusts would arrive.
2nd Level
Main Topic
The main idea that David Rubadiri wants to convey to the audience is the fact that no external
force or man-made object can withstand the effects of mother nature. This was represented on
lines 27-29, where we learn that the women’s clothes were falling apart, and their bare bodies
were exposed.
Author’s Purpose
David Rubadiri’s main purpose in this poem is to educate the audience to respect mother
nature and the earth, because if it is enraged, then there is no way for any human or external
force to be able to tranquilize it.
Point of View
This poem is written in the third person point of view. We know this because no personal
pronouns are used throughout the poem. Another reason why we know this is because we
receive almost no information of the speaker/narrator. It is very likely that David Rubadiri chose
to write this poem in the third person point of view, so that the audience can observe the
thunderstorm and its effects on the village from a much broader perspective, as they aren’t
being restricted to just a single character’s point of view.
Structure
This poem is composed of two large stanzas, each of them containing a different perspective of
the storm. In the first stanza, David Rubadiri describes the nature of the storm as it is
approaching the little village. We learn that the storm is extremely dangerous, as it is
exceedingly high in speed and magnitude. The second stanza then gives us an insight on the
effects of the violent storm when it arrives in the village.
Text Features and Literary Devices
1. “Clouds come hurrying with the wind” (line 2)
This is an example of personification, as it is giving a non-living thing (the clouds), human
attributes (to hurry). This references the speed at which the clouds approach the village.

2. “Like a madman chasing nothing” (line 9)

 This is a simile, as it is a direct comparison between two objects (the stormy clouds and
the madman) with the use of ‘like’. This shows that the storm is unpredictable, as there
is no official endpoint for the storm.

3. “Pregnant Clouds” (line 10)

This is an example of personification, as it is giving a non-living thing (the clouds), human
attributes (to be pregnant). This was used to indicate the gigantic size of the clouds.

3rd Level
Man vs. Nature
The theme of Man vs. Nature is widely covered throughout this poem, especially in the second
stanza. David Rubadiri wants to convey to the audience that no external force or man-made
object can withstand the effects of mother nature. This was represented on lines 27-29, where
we learn that the women’s clothes were falling apart, and their bare bodies were exposed. This
highlights the adverse effects of nature, as it shows how powerful and dangerous natural
disasters can be.
Innocence
The theme of innocence is explored on line 17, where David Rubadiri writes: “Screams of
delighted children”. By writing this, Rubadiri highlights how gullible and innocent the children
are, as they do not have a complete and thorough understanding of how dangerous and life-
threatening this storm can be. This in turn, contrasts with the behavior of the mothers, which is
much more frantic.