Some while ago, Mort reminded me of an Afrikaans poem I had been taught at school, about the Royal Baking Powder tin; and the line ‘Blik op blik op blik’ came back to me. I tried to find the poem (without success), in Die Groot Afrikaanse Verseboek. Not knowing the title, first line or poet, meant that I had to wade through the tome, page by page, hoping to catch a glimpse of that elusive line. I also wanted to find another poem I had learned at school, about a moth circling a flame. No luck there either.
But what I did find was a whole new world. Of beauty, agony, love, joy, pain and grief. And glimpses into the darkest places of people’s souls.
The poem which stopped me in my tracks though, was ‘Die Kind’ by Ingrid Jonker. I had not come across it before, and thought, “Gosh somebody, should really make a fuss about this poem”, and said as much out loud. Well, how to make a fool of yourself in one quick lesson! Apart from the fact that Mandela and Mbeki have quoted it, there are hundreds of references to it on Google.
I’m posting it here, in case there are other ignoramuses like me out there; and also because it is worthy of another read, even if you are familiar with it:
Die kind wat dood geskiet is deur soldate by Nyanga
Die kind is nie dood nie
die kind lig sy vuiste teen sy moeder
wat Afrika skreeu skreeu die geur van vryheid en heide
in die lokasies van die omsingelde hart
Die kind lig sy vuiste teen sy vader
in die optog van die generasies
wat Afrika skreeu skreeu die geur
van geregtigheid en bloed
in die strate van sy gewapende trots
Die kind is nie dood nie
nòg by Langa nòg by Nyanga
nòg by Orlando nòg by Sharpville
nòg by die polisiestasie in Philippi
waar hy lê met ‘n koeël deur sy kop
Die kind is die skaduwee van die soldate
op wag met gewere sarasene en knuppels
die kind is teenwoordig by alle vergaderings en wetgewings
die kind loer deur die vensters van huise en in die harte van moeders
die kind wat net wou speel in die son by Nyanga is orals
die kind wat ‘n man geword het trek deur die ganse Afrika
die kind wat ‘n reus geword het reis deur die hele wêreld
Sonder ‘n pas
Maart 1960
I’ve also found a Dutch poetry site with translations of poetry into English, German and Dutch. So here’s the English version of ‘Die Kind’
The child who was shot dead by soldiers at Nyanga
The child is not dead
The child lifts his fists against his mother
Who shouts Afrika ! shouts the breath
Of freedom and the veld
In the locations of the cordoned heart
The child lifts his fists against his father
in the march of the generations
who shouts Afrika ! shout the breath
of righteousness and blood
in the streets of his embattled pride
The child is not dead
not at Langa nor at Nyanga
not at Orlando nor at Sharpeville
nor at the police station at Philippi
where he lies with a bullet through his brain
The child is the dark shadow of the soldiers
on guard with rifles Saracens and batons
the child is present at all assemblies and law-givings
the child peers through the windows of houses and into the hearts of mothers
this child who just wanted to play in the sun at Nyanga is everywhere
the child grown to a man treks through all Africa
the child grown into a giant journeys through the whole world
Without a pass
(Uit: The South African Family Encyclopaedia, written and compiled by Peter Joyce; Struik Publishers 1989. Selected Poems, Ingrid Jonker; Jonathan Cape 1968.)
Thank you Dex, Ramon and Mort, for this introduction into a world that has previously left me cold. I am savouring Afrikaans now, like I never did at school, because it was taught AT me.
Arb and Marijayn – keep working at it girls, it’s worth the effort.
And if anyone out there knows the ‘Blik op blik op blik’ poem, please put me out of my misery and post it here!
Hey poodytat, check out my post on Blogspot!
Why not also credit Jack Cope (who was Ingrid Jonker’s lover) as the translator?
Michael, I was not aware that Jack Cope translated “Die Kind”, and I thank you for bringing it to my attention.
Perhaps you should also alert the “muurgedichten” website, so that they could include Jack Cope in their credits?
Before you do that, would you like to read ” A Fork in the Road” by Andre Brink?
Ingrid was a complicated individual…a tormented beautiful soul.
Hi Maureen, I have heard of ‘A Fork in the Road’, but haven’t read it. Thanks for the prod – will put it on my To Read list.
Hi Dusty. I really appreciate your comments and the ones who contribute. I struggled with Afrikaans at school and was fortunate to have had a good teacher in 1999 in Standard 9 (Grade 11 for the younger generation) who showed me how to appreciate and love ‘Die Taal’. I have been looking for a poem I think is called ‘Glaucus kilm uit die water’ that deals with the Poet’s recovery from Alcolism. I think it was written by Opperman as well. I would really appreciate it if someone can direct me to the poem.
Neal, you have been looking for this piece for a very long time – I see you first asked for help in October 2011! I used my Googlepecker and think I have found the right poem. It’s in Ian van Rooyen’s thesis on page 149 (page 159 of the document): http://uctscholar.uct.ac.za/PDF/5012_Van_Rooyen_IW.pdf
Hi Dusty,
I can’t get access to the link posted. Please be so kind to email me the document.
Here is the text I found. No copyright infringement intended – full credit to the poet, DJ Opperman:
Glaukus Klim uit die Water
Hy skud die skubbe en die druppels af
en lig hom teen ‘n vin
dié vaste wêreld in.
En uit die vier knoppe van die selekant
knop
voet na voet
hand na hand
kruip en waggel ek orent
langs die eersterivier
deur bos en tussen oorblare van die olifant
oor ‘n wankelplank…
,hier wil ek woon’:
Thibaultstr. 3
3340 jou telefoon
identiteitsdokument…?
En om my: uit die eerste waters
staan ‘n wêreld nat en skoon.
Ek moet die name
van die minerale leer,
van angelier, voëlsalles
noem en tel
en deur die noem besit:
dit annekseer,
my vlag laat wapper,
proklameer
en met kaart en transport
die aarde se katalogus
aan hierdie grens as pionier opstel
en my oortuig dat ek bo-waters woon.
Die takke van seringe drup,
japonicas is nat,
die voorkop van ‘n apie drup,
en hoepoes loop pik-pik
oor nat vlegsels van die kweeken
alles drup, geweek
met waters van die doop.
En óp foon kom foon
duif óp duif
boek óp boek
skoenlapper
uit ‘n gister sit
en alles stuif en teel,
is geil en naak;
en duif en boek
en vrou en alles ruik na sout en see,
bamboes en meeu
en alles sien ek bifokaal.
Klim in ‘n groot wit bad,
was af die slym,
dep met ‘n handdoek droog,
trap versigtig,
o altyd so versigtig
vir die gly,
vir die terugglip tot vis, tot jakopeweroog.
Thanks Dusty. I really appreciate it.
There is some intertextuality relating to this poem to be found in an article in By (supplement to Beeld) that many South Africans can identify with: http://www.news24.com/Beeld/In-Diepte/0,,3-67_2300050,00.html
Yes, that is a wonderful article – expressing the way so many of us feel: hopeful yet frustrated. Yet there is a fierce underlying patriotism, laced with patience and understanding.
Thank you for visiting, Anna.
Simone has posted pictures and details about the Ingrid Jonker Memorial in Gordon’s Bay – well worth having a look.
Hello Dusty
I am not sure what is going on here. Who says who is Ingrids daughter ? I am the only
one. I can’t remember but did you get permission from me to publish the poem
Die Kind ? Please get back to me ASAP.
Thank you
Simone Jonker.
Thanks for the link Dusty.
I have been slacking on SA Day posts an idea I got from another blogger that has unfortunately taken a break from blogging.
Feeling motivated again to give recognition to the interest aspects of South Africa.
Great – looking forward to seeing the gems that you find!
hallo simone – ek voel n bietjie vreemd om met jou te korrespondeer. ek voel my so eenmet die die gedig aan mb in versamelde werke van jou ma.ek voel dat daardie gedig vir my gekryf is. spot sy met my?ekhet soveel baie vrae.ek woon nou in die strand.hoe kan ek uitvind?enis ek nie verskriklik verwa(a)nd om so te dink nie???wou sy vir my n ma wees sodat ek die brug kan oor?en diepragtige fotos….
ek wil ou nie ontstel nlie – moet my asseblief nie dagvaar nie. ek reageer maar net na jare se onsekerheid en alleen, soms, op ddaardie gedig.ek woon in n kommune vir mense wat medikasie gebruik en het nie veel vooruitsigte nie – is besig met n boek se skryf en wil dit vir rooi rose stuur aan end van jaar.is daar nie n manier waarop ek met jou in aanrakilng kankom nie?om terug te hoor nie?sommige mense – welmenend-het gese sy is my ma.vergewe my assblief.groete marilize
Hi Dusty
Afrikaans is my second language. My husband is Afrikaans so I had to ask to help understand the note from Marilize but I am afraid it still does not make sense to me.
Simone, I’ve translated as well as I am able:
My interpretation:
Marilize believes that you are Ingrid Jonker’s daughter (Ingrid’s daughter’s name is Simone), and some people have told her that she may also be Ingrid’s daughter. She believes that ‘Die Kind’ could have been written for her. Marilize is writing a book on Ingrid Jonker, which she will submit to Rooi Rose at the end of the year. She would like to contact you for research purposes, and perhaps for permission to use your photos, but would not like to impose.
[…] Dikeni went to Langa to interview the sister of the child that Jonker wrote about in Die Kind. She’d never heard of Ingrid Jonker, and was unaware of the […]
Where can I find first editions of her poetry? (Afrikaans and English?)
Hi Jo, I had a quick look on Google, and found this one at Abe Books for just under R1000. I think you may find more on Google if you have the time and patience to look. And the bandwidth of course.
Thanks for popping in, and happy hunting!
[…] https://dustymuffin.wordpress.com/2007/10/13/die-kind-ingrid-jonker/ […]
Hoe einaardig is dit, dat jul se jul is lief vir Afrikaanse gedigte in Engels? (Net nog ‘n ironie)
As jul nog goeie gedigte soek kyk bietjie vir.
Antjie Krog – Ma
Ingrid Jonker- Bitter Bessie Dagbreek
Adam small – Die here het Gaskommel
😉 Hoop jul geniet dit.
Antjie Krog – http://antjiekrog.blogspot.com/2005/11/ma.html
or
http://www.woorde.co.za/Digters/krog.html
Ingrid Jonker-
http://www.ingridjonker.blogspot.com/
Adam Small-
http://vuurklip.net/?level=5&id=159
All sorts of afrikaans poets
http://www.woorde.co.za/Karel_Afr.html
I hope i have helped you on your search.
Hi James, those are beautiful poems and very useful websites. I really appreciate your contribution, thanks.
Wie stel belang in Rook en Oker vir Uys Krige en Jack deur Ingrid Jonker 2de druk 1969 ?
Hey daar!
Verkoop jy dit, en vir hoeveel?
Follow this link for the poem on the moth and the flame:
http://www.woorde.co.za/Digters/C.J._Langenhoven.html
Thanks for the link, Skellem Willem. Strange how such a simple poem has such and impact on me as a child. And interesting that CJ wrote it too.
Could u plse tell me if this poem is an elegy / ode or free verse?
This sounds like a homework question…
This is what I found with my Googlepecker on thefreedictionary.com :
elegy [ˈɛlɪdʒɪ]
n pl -gies
1. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) a mournful or plaintive poem or song, esp a lament for the dead
ode [əʊd]
n
1. (Literature / Poetry) a lyric poem, typically addressed to a particular subject, with lines of varying lengths and complex rhythms See also Horatian ode, Pindaric ode
free verse
n
(Literature / Poetry) unrhymed verse without a metrical pattern
Openbaring 1228
Die kind is dood.
Woensdag 22 September 2010 17:45
http://www.openbaringe.co.za/
So het ʼn satansgesant haarself probeer verwoord.
Maar die betrokke kind is lank gelede reeds dood.
As misgewas land dit reeds by geboorte in die sloot.
Selfs die nageboorte was oneindig swaar soos lood.
Daaruit het ʼn helgedrog dit tot ʼn lewe kom ontbloot.
Met ʼn naelstring aan Afrika kom heg, met ʼn koord.
Tot ʼn enorme leviatan-poliep, dit so kom vergroot.
Maar die betrokke kind is lank gelede alreeds dood.
Maar ʼn dier probeer dit met ʼn poot, tot lewe stoot.
Ewig nooit kom dit in die nuwe Jerusalem se poort.
Maar in ʼn ou Jerusalem woon steeds ʼn valse Jood.
Wat in ʼn leuen-testament ʼn erfenis verkeerd verwoord.
Ja ʼn erfenis wat hulle aan ʼn ander wil laat behoort.
Sodat hulle dit vandaar slu in hulle rigting kan stoot.
Maar die erfgenaam is om alle praktiese redes dood.
Daaruit het vir almal net ʼn enorme parasiet vergroot.
Solank dit op alles kan teer gaan dit met alles akkoord.
Kyk, uit ʼn paar miljoen, verstaan net ʼn paar die woord.
So het ʼn satansgesant oor haar woord- in selfmoord,
in Hades gevind- die kind is lank vergete alreeds dood.
Thanks Cas, it’s always interesting to see different perspectives.
Thank you so much for posting this wonderful poem!
I grew up in a small Transvaal town & spoke fluent Afrikaans as a small child, and even did a year of Afrikaans literature at Wits.
I’ve been gone from SA for over 25 years. But when I found myself reading ‘Die Kind’ aloud, I understood it almost perfectly. (and have to admit it brought me to tears.)
The English version just doesn’t have the same resonance and effect, for me.
I came across your blog by accident – while searching for info about the new movie about Ingrid Jonker – Black Butterflies – opening in NY soon. Glad to have found it!
PS Have you heard anything about the move, by the way?
Thanks for your visit, Lynn. Why is it we can remember things we learned as a child, but can’t find the car keys we put down 10 minutes ago?
I haven’t heard much about the movie, but here is some info I found:
It will be released in SA in August/September (http://blackbutterfliesproduction.com/?p=1)
The movie opened in the Netherlands in February. Here is some info about the film, as well as a trailer: http://bookslive.co.za/blog/2011/01/20/black-butterflies-trailer-a-film-about-south-african-poetess-ingrid-jonker/ It certainly looks very powerful!
Here is an interview with the filmmakers: http://www.indiewire.com/article/meet_the_2011_tribeca_filmmakers_black_butterflies_director_paula_van_der_o/
Do let me know when you’ve seen the movie, and what your impressions are.
Hi there
I am Simone. And i did not know how otherwise get in touch with you. I would loke to kbow if you got permission from the Ingrid Jonker Trust to publish mmy mothers poem ? Just asking as this is a sensitive issue for me
Sincerely
Simone Jonker
Simone, I am sorry this is a sensitive issue to you.
I have just Googled the first two lines of the poem, and ‘about 11,600’ responses were returned, so the work has been widely ‘published’ on the internet.
The reproduction of ‘Die Kind’ on this blog has elicited only positive response, and has made people think about our past. For that you should be proud.
Do you guys know that this poem was used in a song by the Afrikaans group “Klopjag”…….real nice song…..and come to think of it, Klopjag, and it’s sisterword “Hakkejag” is such beautiful descriptive words (-:
Thanks Louis, It’s good to see how this piece has survived so long, and is has been incorporated into other genres. Long may it last!
Die Mot en die Kers
C.J. Langenhoven
Die ander motte was dom en dwaas,
Maar ek sal ver van die kers af bly;
Hier ver uit die skemerte sal ek kyk,
Hier ver is dit veilig en kyk is vry.
Maar ek hoef nie van eenkant net te kyk –
Ek vlieg op dieselfde afstand om,
Dan weet ek van alkant hoe hy lyk
Om beter te sorg om nie nader te kom.
My sirkel was skeef en ingebuig,
Maar daar ook nag, waar ek naaste was,
Het daar niks gebeur – ek maak verniet
My veiling so groot en so ver van die as.
Die wieletjie draai al vinniger om
En die lig en die gloed word al groter genot;
En die veilings word al nouer al rondom die as –
En die end van die wiel is die as van die mot.
– C.J. Langenhoven –
– Versamelde Werke –
Yay for mary anne! Three years has been a long time to wait, but well worth it.
I don’t remember it as such a childlike poem – but then I suppose that is why it was taught to me as a second-language poem.
Its message is still as strong though. Thanks for posting it.
Afrikaans poetry is not so well represented on the web. I tried to find ‘glaukus klim uit die water’ for years now. It deals with the poet’s recovery from alcoholism. It think the ATKV must take the blame for this as they claim to be the custodians of the Taal.
She is a freedom fighter for an Africans and life troubling Women’s!
Read your message. Thought you might like to know a movie just came out on the life of ingrid jonker. Black butterflies. Must see.
Definitely a must see – Black Butterflies… But being Afrikaans I was a bit dissapointed that the movie was in English…
It was a lovely film. I felt her emotions throughout. I finished watching the movie 15 min ago and am frantically searching the web for all her poems translated to English. “Die Kind” has touched my heart like no other poem ever has.
Het eers onlangs begin Ingrid Jonker lees, en ek is verslaaf.
I too would love to rediscover Afrikaans poetry – also did not pay much attention to it at school but I am struggling to find a compilation of Afrikaans poetry that was published in the 1960s or 1970s. (with well known poets eg marais, joker, krige, eybers, etc) any suggestions please?
Linda
Linda,
Afrikaans is my 3rd language after English and Dutch but its poetry moves me more than any in the other two. Years ago I bought a book of Afrikaans poetry titled ” Senior verseboek” by D.J. Opperman published by Tafelberg ISBN 0 624 02179 3. It spans the whole period from the birth of the language to about 1980 an covers about a hundred poets. Unfortunately Ingrid Jonker is represented by only 2 poems in the volume.
Frank
Please contact me on Jonker.simone@gmail.com. With connection to the publishing of my mothers poem Die Kind
The one abouth the moth is by CJ Langenhoven and i think it is called Die Mot en Die Kers
I must say as someone who grew up being bombarded by the importance of the English Language and English Literature, it was Ingrid Jonker and her beautiful works who inspired me to have Afrikaans as a Home Language at school.
I do not even think that anyone can compare to her. My favourite is Ontvlugting and of course BitterBessie Dagbreek
Ik heb het huis op zijn kop te bewijzen verschillende hervormingen
Ik kan niet wachten om een expert te zijn
blijven …
Ik heb het huis op zijn kop te bewijzen verschillende hervormingen
Ik kan niet wachten om een expert te zijn
ga
Aaispaai, DJ Opperman
Ek vra vir Ma wat sy verstaan
onder die woordjie ewigheid.
Sy sê: daar is geen tyd,
maar alles gaan net aan en aan.
Dit moet dan iets beteken
soos ‘n Royalbakpoeierblik
met prent op prent geteken:
jy kry net blik op blik op blik.
(no copyright infringement intendend)
Thanks Miki, it’s still a delightful piece to read!
Hi Dusty, is this site still active?
Hi Nico, yes I am still around, but I don’t write any more.