Karroo Stop

Karroo Stop

A wholetrainful of coallike a soulburnt black in a holeor tunnel, passed us slowly.We were halted in our carriage. The roll,roll, roll, roll, roll, roll, roll,dragged painfully, each truck like the goalachieved, yet still this kept controlof each eye.

A horse and a foalbeyond were meagre to it, coal –black horse and foal,and far-off clouds stroll whitein little mounds, and the coalin mounds and piles that crawland crawl.

A sigh, a grunt from us all,with one exception, I saw patrollike a moleunderground, through wallsof skewer patience, cold and fireand old oldman’s sharp smile, an oldman wrinkled smallwith teeth like coal.

A wholetrainful of coallike a soulburnt black in a holeor tunnel, passed us slowly.

Narrator’s train is halted in a siding in the Karroo

He watches (with other passengers) as a train laden with coal goes past

Simile: blackness of the train compared to a soul that has been burnt black

We were halted in our carriage. The roll,roll, roll, roll, roll, roll, roll,dragged painfully, each truck like the goalachieved, yet still this kept controlof each eye.

Carriage move by very slowly – without apparent end – repeated “roll” suggests how slowly this occurs

Appear to go on and on

Movement is so slow that each carriage that passes appears to be an achievement – requires a great deal of effort

Passengers are completelymesmerised

SUMMARY OF STANZA 1

• Sets the scene• Know why the passenger train has stopped• Know what the passengers are watching• Know the rhythm with which the train is

moving• Unaware of anything else• Close-up

A horse and a foalbeyond were meagre to it, coal –black horse and foal,

Poet’s eye zooms out and he tells us what else he can see

Very small in comparison to the size of the train

Notices that their colour is the same as the coal

and far-off clouds stroll whitein little mounds, and the coalin mounds and piles that crawland crawl.

Eye glances upwards to the sky – notices the clouds moving

Contrast in colour

Shape of the coal and the shape of the clouds is similar

Movement of the coal trucks vs movement of the clouds

A sigh, a grunt from us all,with one exception, I saw patrollike a moleunderground, through wallsof skewer patience, cold and fireand old oldman’s sharp smile, an oldman wrinkled smallwith teeth like coal.

Passengers sigh with relief as the last truck passes by

Old man – simile – compared to a mole – dressed in black or

Images of heat and coldLink between train and old man