Get notes, summary, questions and answers, workbook solutions (Beeta Publication/Morning Star), critical analysis, word meanings, extras, and pdf of Wole Soyinka’s poem Telephone : ISC Class 12 English (Rhapsody: A Collection of ISC Poems). However, the notes should only be treated for references and changes should be made according to the needs of the students.
Video summary
Summary
The poem “Telephone Conversation” by Wole Soyinka explores the problematic issue of racial discrimination through a simple phone call between a West African man and a British landlady. The man, looking for a place to live, finds the price and location good, but decides to tell the landlady he is African, knowing it could make her not want to rent to him.
When he says he is African, she is silent, which he first thinks shows she is well-bred. But then she bluntly asks if he is “light or very dark.” Her rude question ruins any idea he had of her being sophisticated or open-minded.
Trying to clarify her intrusive question, he uses the comparison of “plain or milk chocolate,” and she responds in a clinical, impersonal way. He finally describes himself as “West African sepia,” a detail noted in his passport. Not knowing that term, the landlady fails to hide her ignorance and lack of interest in him.
Frustrated and almost amused by how absurd the situation is, the man jokingly says that while his face is dark, his palms and feet are as white as “peroxide blonde.” Sensing the call will end soon, he makes one last try at inviting the landlady to see his skin colour herself. The poem ends without revealing her final response, but it is implied her questions were based more on prejudice than simple curiosity.
The poem strongly criticises the deep-rooted racial prejudice in society. Through the straightforward but loaded dialogue between the two characters, Soyinka captures the dehumanising experience of being judged only by skin colour. The irony and absurdity of the interaction highlight how common racial discrimination still is, even in everyday activities like apartment hunting.
Line-by-line explanation
The price seemed reasonable, location
Indifferent. The landlady swore she lived
Off premises.
In these opening lines, the speaker provides us with the basic context for the poem. He is considering renting a place, and the price appears to be reasonable while the location doesn’t particularly excite or bother him. The landlady assures him that she doesn’t live on the property, implying that the tenant will have some degree of privacy. At this point, everything seems rather standard and nothing raises a red flag for the prospective tenant.
Nothing remained
But self-confession. “Madam,” I warned,
“I hate a wasted journey—I am African.”
The speaker feels the need to “confess” that he is African. The use of the word “confession” suggests that revealing his ethnicity may be perceived negatively, an unfortunate reality many people face due to racial prejudices. The speaker is also practical, he doesn’t want to waste time and energy in going to view the place if the landlady is going to discriminate against him for being African.
Silence. Silenced transmission of pressurised good-breeding.
The landlady doesn’t respond immediately. The speaker interprets this silence as her being caught between her own possible prejudices and societal norms that dictate good manners. This “pressurised good-breeding” indicates that her silence might be due to her trying to react appropriately, even though she may feel otherwise.
Voice, when it came,
Lipstick coated, long gold-rolled
Cigarette-holder pipped. Caught I was, foully.
When the landlady finally speaks, the speaker imagines her voice as being sophisticated, visualising her with lipstick and a stylish cigarette holder. However, he soon feels deceived or “caught foully” when her subsequent words reveal her racial bias.
“HOW DARK?”…I had not misheard….”ARE YOU LIGHT OR VERY DARK?”
The landlady bluntly asks about the exact shade of the speaker’s skin colour, confirming his earlier apprehension about racial prejudice. She doesn’t mince words and her direct question comes as a shock to the speaker, making him realise that he had not misunderstood her initial silence.
Button B. Button A. Stench
Of rancid breath of public hide-and-speak.
Red booth. Red pillar-box. Red double-tiered
Omnibus squelching tar.
Here, the speaker describes his surroundings and his feelings. The “Button B. Button A.” might refer to the buttons in a public telephone booth. The “stench of rancid breath” symbolises the disgusting nature of the societal discrimination he is experiencing. The repeated use of the colour “red” could symbolise anger, emergency, or attention, encapsulating his emotional state.
It was real! Shamed
By ill-mannered silence, surrender
Pushed dumbfoundment to beg simplification.
Realising the landlady’s blunt racism, the speaker feels a mixture of shame and disbelief. His silence is not out of manners but rather from being “dumbfounded,” and he eventually breaks it to ask for clarification, almost as if he can’t believe what he’s hearing.
“ARE YOU DARK? OR VERY LIGHT” Revelation came
“You mean- like plain or milk chocolate?”
The landlady repeats her question, but the speaker, now fully aware of her intent, tries to bring some level of absurdity to the conversation by comparing skin tone to chocolate. This line reflects the speaker’s effort to mirror back the ridiculousness of her query.
Her accent was clinical, crushing in its light
Impersonality. Rapidly, wave-length adjusted
I chose. “West African sepia”—and as afterthought,
“Down in my passport.”
The landlady’s tone is cold and clinical, devoid of any warmth or humanity. The speaker decides to answer her question by describing his skin colour as “West African sepia,” a formal tone used perhaps in official documents like a passport.
Silence for spectroscopic
Flight of fancy, till truthfulness changed her accent
Hard on the mouthpiece “WHAT’S THAT?” conceding
“DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT IS.” “Like brunette.”
The landlady goes silent again, possibly confused or unwilling to admit ignorance. When she finally speaks, her tone changes, revealing her true feelings. The speaker simplifies his answer to “Like brunette” to make it easier for her to understand.
“THAT’S DARK, ISN’T IT?”
“Not altogether.
Facially, I am brunette, but madam you should see the rest of me.
Palm of my hand, soles of my feet.
Are a peroxide blonde. Friction, caused—
Foolishly madam—by sitting down, has turned
My bottom raven black—”
The conversation reaches a point of satire. The speaker plays with the idea of his skin color, saying that while his face might be dark, other parts of him are as light as “peroxide blonde.” He even humorously adds that sitting down has turned his bottom “raven black,” making a mockery of the landlady’s fixation on skin colour.
“One moment madam!—sensing
Her receiver rearing on the thunderclap
About my ears— “Madam,” I pleaded, “wouldn’t you rather
See for yourself?”
Sensing that the landlady is about to end the call, the speaker makes a last effort to invite her to judge him in person rather than base her decision on preconceived notions. The poem leaves us hanging, not revealing what the landlady chooses to do, but the implication is quite clear: the entire conversation exposes the insidious and pervasive nature of racial discrimination.
Word meanings
Indifferent: Not particularly good or bad; mediocre.
Off-premises: Not living at the same location where the rental property is.
Self-confession: The act of admitting or revealing something about oneself, in this context, the speaker’s ethnicity.
Silenced transmission: Here, it refers to the unspoken thoughts or emotions being communicated through silence.
Pressurized good-breeding: A sense of forced politeness or refinement, likely concealing underlying prejudice.
Lipstick coated, long gold-rolled Cigarette-holder pipped: Imagery used to describe a woman of a certain class and sophistication, as inferred from her voice.
Foully: In an unfair or treacherous manner.
Button B, Button A: Likely referring to buttons in a public telephone booth.
Stench of rancid breath of public hide-and-speak: The foul atmosphere of public deceit and hypocrisy.
Red booth, Red pillar-box, Red double-tiered Omnibus squelching tar: Specific items in the environment, possibly symbolizing urgency or danger.
Shamed by ill-mannered silence: Feeling humiliated by the landlady’s discourteous quiet.
Dumbfounded: Astonished or amazed to the point of being unable to speak.
Simplification: Request for clarity or a more straightforward explanation.
Clinical: Coldly detached; lacking in emotion.
Impersonality: Lack of personal feelings or character.
Wave-length adjusted: Adjusting to the situation or changing one’s approach.
West African sepia: A specific tone of brown, suggesting the speaker’s skin color.
Spectroscopic Flight of fancy: An imaginative but unrealistic idea, likely referring to the landlady’s thoughts.
Hard on the mouthpiece: Speaking with force or intensity.
Brunette: A person with dark brown hair, used metaphorically here to describe skin color.
Peroxide blonde: Referring to a very light color, often achieved by using chemical bleach.
Friction, caused: The result of rubbing or resistance.
Raven black: A very dark shade of black.
Receiver rearing: The act of pulling back the telephone receiver, perhaps in shock or disbelief.
Thunderclap: A sudden, loud noise, here metaphorically referring to a shocking moment.
Critical analysis of the poem
The poem “Telephone Conversation” by Wole Soyinka explores the problematic issue of racial discrimination through an ordinary phone call between a West African man and a British landlady. The man, seeking a place to rent, finds the price and location appealing, but decides to tell the landlady he is African, aware it could sway her decision to rent to him.
When he discloses he is African, she is silent, which he first interprets as her being well-mannered. However, she then bluntly asks whether he is “light or very dark.” Her rude inquiry destroys any impression he had of her as sophisticated or open-minded.
Attempting to clarify her intrusive question, he compares himself to “plain or milk chocolate,” and she replies in a detached, impersonal way. He finally describes himself as “West African sepia,” a detail noted in his passport. Not recognizing the term, the landlady fails to conceal her ignorance and apathy toward him.
Frustrated and almost amused by the absurdity of the situation, the man jokingly says that while his face is dark, his palms and feet are as white as “peroxide blonde.” Sensing the call is ending soon, he makes one last attempt to invite the landlady to observe his skin colour personally. The poem concludes without divulging her final response, but implies her questions stemmed more from prejudice than simple interest.
The poem strongly criticises the deeply-rooted racial bias in society. Through the frank yet loaded dialogue between the two, Soyinka captures the dehumanising experience of being evaluated solely by one’s skin colour. The irony and absurdity of the exchange highlight the prevalence of racial discrimination, even in everyday tasks like apartment hunting.
Workbook solutions
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. The price of which of the following is the speaker talking about in the first line of the poem?
(a) A journey
(b) A rented accommodation
(c) Cigarette-holder
(d) None of the above
Answer: (b) A rented accommodation
2. Which of the following is NOT an issue with the speaker for renting the accommodation?
(a) Price
(b) Location
(c) Residents
(d) Privacy
Answer: (c) Residents
3. Which of the following confession is made by the speaker?
(a) He is from America
(b) He is from Africa
(c) He is as black as raven
(d) He is not dark.
Answer: (b) He is from Africa
4. What does the ‘self-confession’ by the speaker suggest?
(a) He pre-empts a racist prejudice from the lady
(b) He pre-empts a hike in the rent
(c) He feels himself as inferior to the landlady
(d) None of the above
Answer: (a) He pre-empts a racist prejudice from the lady
5. How does the speaker want to prevent ‘a wasted journey’?
(a) By asking the lady to come and see for herself.
(b) By clearing the issue through telephonic conversation.
(c) By sending someone to clear all the issues.
(d) None of the above.
Answer: (b) By clearing the issue through telephonic conversation.
6. Which figure of speech is used in the line given below? ‘Silence. Silenced transmission of…’
(a) Simile
(b) Metaphor
(c) Personification
(d) Polyptoton
Answer: (d) Polyptoton
7. What is suggested by the phrase ‘Lipstick coated’?
(a) The lady is trying to hide her racist prejudice
(b) The lady is trying to hide her own identity.
(c) The lady is trying to be extra-cautious
(d) None of the above.
Answer: (a) The lady is trying to hide her racist prejudice
8. What is referred to by the landlady’s ‘rancid breath’?
(a) Harsh voice
(b) Ignorance
(c) Knowledge
(d) Hypocrisy
Answer: (d) Hypocrisy
9. What is indicated by the colour ‘red’ in ‘Red booth. Red pillar-box and Red double-tiered Omnibus’?
(a) Hypocrisy
(b) Annoyance
(c) Ignorance
(d) Knowledge
Answer: (b) Annoyance
10. What colour is ‘West African sepia’?
(a) Black
(b) White
(c) Red
(d) Dark Brown
Answer: (d) Dark Brown
11. Which figure of speech is used in the given line? ‘You mean—like plain or milk chocolate?’
(a) Metaphor
(b) Personification
(c) Alliteration
(d) Simile
Answer: (d) Simile
12. Due to which ‘truthfulness’ does the landlady change her accent?
(a) She does not know about the colour ‘West African sepia’
(b) She is not aware about the speaker’s race
(c) She is being too harsh
(d) None of the above
Answer: (a) She does not know about the colour ‘West African sepia’
13. Which colour are the palms of speaker’s hands and soles of his feet?
(a) West African sepia
(b) Brunette
(c) Peroxide blonde
(d) Raven black
Answer: (c) Peroxide blonde
14. What reason does the speaker give for his bottom being ‘raven black’?
(a) Harsh weather
(b) Continuous sitting
(c) Standing in the sun
(d) None of the above
Answer: (b) Continuous sitting
15. Which figure of speech is used in the line give below? ‘Her receiver rearing on the thunderclap.’
(a) Assonance
(b) Onomatopoeia
(c) Simile
(d) Alliteration
Answer: (d) Alliteration
Complete the Sentences
1. For the speaker in the poem, the accommodation he wants to rent is all right because ______
Answer: the rent is reasonable, the location is acceptable, and the landlady does not live on the property, which ensures his privacy.
2. The speaker makes a confession at the beginning of the poem because ______
Answer: he wants to avoid a “wasted journey.” Having faced racial prejudice before, he preemptively reveals he is African to determine immediately if the landlady will reject him, thus saving the time and effort of a pointless visit.
3. The speaker’s confession about the colour of his skin can be described as ironic because ______
Answer: the word “confession” implies guilt or the admission of a wrongdoing. The speaker has done nothing wrong, as his skin colour is a natural part of his identity. Using this word ironically highlights the absurdity of a society that forces him to apologize for something for which he is not responsible.
4. After the speaker’s confession, the lady remains silent for some time and he seems to hear a ‘transmission’ from her because ______
Answer: he perceives her unspoken internal conflict. The silence is not empty but is filled with the “pressurized good-breeding” of a person struggling to reconcile her racist views with her attempt to remain polite. The “transmission” is the message of this internal battle, where her prejudice is about to win over her manners.
5. The voice of the lady has been described by the speaker as ‘Lipstick coated’ because ______
Answer: it suggests she is trying to hide her ugly prejudice behind a superficial layer of politeness and social grace. Just as lipstick provides a cosmetic coating, her haughty and aristocratic tone is an attempt to gloss over the deep-seated racism that her questions soon reveal.
6. The speaker repeatedly use the word Red as in ‘Red booth’, ‘Red pillar-box’ and ‘Red double tiered/Omnibus’ because ______
Answer: the repetition of the colour red serves to emphasize his growing anger and frustration. While these objects establish the setting as the United Kingdom, the colour itself reflects the speaker’s internal state of rage and suffocation as he is confronted with the landlady’s blatant racism.
7. The speaker’s reference to the lady as ‘considerate’ is an example of verbal irony because ______
Answer: she is being the opposite of considerate. Her so-called “consideration” is merely her rephrasing an intensely racist and offensive question. The speaker uses the word sarcastically to mock her insensitivity and to highlight the absurdity of her obsessive focus on his skin colour.
8. The speaker describes his face as ‘brunette’, his hands and feet as ‘peroxide blonde’ and his bottom as ‘raven black’ because ______
Answer: he is satirically mocking the landlady’s simplistic and absurd obsession with reducing him to a single colour. By offering a complex and ridiculous palette of different shades for different body parts, he criticizes and confuses her, exposing the foolishness of judging a person based on such a narrow, prejudiced view.
9. The landlady shows double standards because ______
Answer: she attempts to maintain a facade of “good-breeding” and polite, polished speech while harboring deep-seated racist beliefs. Her initial hesitation and “lipstick coated” voice are a thin veil for the crude prejudice revealed by her blunt question about his skin colour, showing a stark contrast between her outward manners and her intolerant inner self.
10. The speaker plead with the landlady to ‘see for’ herself because ______
Answer: it is a final, ironic challenge to her prejudice. By inviting her to judge his colour in person, he dares her to confront the absurdity of her own question and to see him as a complex human being rather than a simple category. It is a last, desperate, and satirical jab before he anticipates she will hang up on him.
Short Answer Questions
1. What is the speaker’s confession? Why does he make such a confession? How is it received by the landlady?
Answer: The speaker’s confession is that he is an African.
He makes this confession at the outset because he wants to avoid a wasted journey. Based on past experiences of racial prejudice, he anticipates that the landlady might refuse to rent to him because of his race, and he wants to settle this crucial point over the phone before travelling to see the apartment.
The confession is received by the landlady with a long, awkward silence. This pause is filled with what the speaker calls a ‘silenced transmission’ of her ‘pressurized good-breeding’. After the silence, her politeness gives way to blunt racism, and she asks him directly how dark his skin is.
2. Why is there a ‘silence’ after the speaker confesses that he is African? What is suggested by ‘Silenced transmission’?
Answer: There is a silence after the speaker’s confession because the landlady is taken aback and is pondering how to respond to this information. It is an awkward pause where her feigned politeness, or ‘good-breeding’, is in conflict with her inherent racism. She is trying to figure out how to proceed with the conversation.
The phrase ‘Silenced transmission’ suggests that this silence is not empty but is full of meaning that the speaker can perceive. He interprets it as a communication of the landlady’s internal thoughts and her struggle. He senses that her racism is winning the battle over her manners, and a prejudiced question is about to follow.
3. When the lady finally speaks after a pause, what does the speaker make out about the woman? Was he correct in his assessment?
Answer: When the lady finally speaks, the speaker imagines her as a wealthy, privileged woman. From the sound of her voice, he pictures her with a ‘long gold-rolled/Cigarette-holder’ and perceives her as having a haughty, aristocratic voice that displays social and economic superiority.
His assessment was partially correct. He correctly identified her condescending attitude and social standing. However, any assumption he may have had that her ‘good-breeding’ would prevent her from being openly rude was shattered. His initial assessment of her as someone who would maintain a polite facade was proven wrong when she dropped all formalities and bluntly asked the deeply racist question about his skin colour.
4. What is similar between the two words ‘self-confession’ and ‘caught’? What do they suggest?
Answer: The similarity between the words ‘self-confession’ and ‘caught’ is that both carry connotations of wrongdoing, guilt, and illegality. A confession is an admission to a crime, and being caught implies being discovered committing a forbidden act.
These words suggest the profound and absurd nature of the racism the speaker faces. By applying these terms to his own racial identity, he ironically highlights how the prejudiced society he is interacting with has made him feel like a criminal for something as natural as his skin colour. It shows his awareness that in the landlady’s eyes, being African is an offense for which he must ‘confess’ and can be ‘caught’.
5. How do the words ‘How Dark’ reflect the theme of the poem?
Answer: The words ‘How Dark’ directly and powerfully reflect the poem’s central theme of racism and prejudice. With this blunt question, the landlady drops all pretense of politeness and reduces the speaker’s entire identity, humanity, and suitability as a tenant to a single, crude metric: the specific shade of his skin. These words expose the dehumanizing and absurd core of racism, which judges individuals based on superficial physical traits. The question is the pivotal moment where the covert prejudice of the landlady becomes overt, forming the central conflict and illustrating the poem’s satirical critique of a racist mindset.
6. How does the speaker feel after the landlady asks him the colour of his skin? What does he think about the lady?
Answer: After the landlady asks for his skin colour, the speaker feels shocked, stunned, and utterly dumbfounded. He is so taken aback by the bluntness of the racist question that he is rendered speechless for a moment. This shock is followed by a feeling of disgust at the unexpected and offensive turn in the conversation.
He thinks the landlady is a hypocrite whose ‘good-breeding’ is a thin disguise for her ugly racism. He perceives her words as having a ‘stench’ and her breath as ‘rancid’, which are metaphors for the foulness of her prejudice. He sees her as someone who was playing a game of ‘hide-and-speak’, hiding her true racist feelings, which have now been revealed.
7. Why does the speaker feel ‘shamed’? What does it indicate about the speaker?
Answer: The speaker feels ‘shamed’ not because of his race, but because of his own ‘ill-mannered silence’. He is so stunned by the landlady’s offensive question that he is unable to respond immediately. He feels ashamed of this momentary inability to speak, as he considers it a breach of social etiquette, even when faced with her extreme rudeness.
This reaction indicates that the speaker is a polite, sensitive, and well-mannered individual, ironically possessing more genuine ‘good-breeding’ than the landlady herself. It reveals his internal conflict between maintaining his own standards of decorum and dealing with an absurd and insulting situation. It shows his deep sensitivity and the psychological weight that the racist encounter places on him.
8. Why does the speaker feel that the lady is ‘considerate’? What does it indicate about the lady?
Answer: The speaker’s description of the lady as ‘considerate’ is an instance of verbal irony. He says this sarcastically because she varies the emphasis of her offensive question—”ARE YOU DARK? OR VERY LIGHT?”—as if she were merely trying to clarify a normal, reasonable point. He is mocking her for treating a deeply racist inquiry as a simple, practical matter.
This indicates that the landlady is completely unaware of her own bigotry and lacks any self-awareness or empathy. She is so entrenched in her prejudice that she does not see her question as offensive. Instead, she believes she is being practical. It reveals her deep-seated, unthinking racism and her utter insensitivity to the speaker’s humanity.
9. Explain the meaning of ‘Silence for spectroscopic/Flight of fancy, till truthfulness clanged her accent.’
Answer: This phrase describes the second major silence in the poem, which occurs after the speaker replies that his colour is ‘West African sepia’. The ‘spectroscopic flight of fancy’ is the speaker’s witty and ironic description of what he imagines is happening in the landlady’s mind. He pictures her mentally trying to analyze the unfamiliar term ‘sepia’ as if using a spectroscope to break it down into a spectrum of colours she can understand. This silence, filled with her confused effort, ends when the speaker’s ‘truthfulness’—his precise and intellectual answer—causes her polite accent to ‘clang’ and become harsh out of frustration and ignorance, as she blurts out, “WHAT’S THAT?”.
10. Why does the speaker state different colours for his body parts? What is it suggestive of?
Answer: The speaker states that his body is composed of different colours—his face is ‘brunette’, his palms and soles are ‘peroxide blonde’, and his bottom is ‘raven black’—as a satirical and intellectual response to the landlady’s simplistic, racist question. He uses this witty description to mock her obsession with skin colour and to deliberately confuse her.
This is suggestive of the complete absurdity of racism. By deconstructing himself into a palette of various, even contradictory, colours, the speaker demonstrates that a human being is complex and cannot be reduced to a single, crude label like ‘dark’ or ‘light’. It is his way of reclaiming his dignity, using his intelligence to expose the foolishness of her prejudice.
11. How does the setting depict the universality of the theme of the poem?
Answer: Although the setting is implicitly British, indicated by the ‘red telephone booth’, ‘red pillar-box’, and ‘omnibus’, the poet deliberately avoids providing many specific details. This vagueness in the setting helps to make the theme of racism universal. By keeping the focus on the dialogue and the psychological experience of the speaker rather than on a specific, detailed location, the poem suggests that such prejudiced encounters are not limited to England. It implies that this type of racist incident is a widespread issue that can and does occur in many different settings around the world, making the theme of prejudice a universal human problem.
12. Why does the speaker plead with the landlady to see for herself? What does it tell about the speaker?
Answer: The speaker pleads with the landlady to see for herself because he senses that she is about to end the conversation and hang up the phone. His plea is a final, desperate, and ironic challenge to her prejudice. Instead of allowing her to retreat into her ignorance, he invites her to confront him in person, thereby forcing her to make a judgment based on actual sight rather than on her crude, preconceived notions.
This tells us that the speaker is intelligent, resilient, and possesses a sharp wit. Even when faced with a dehumanizing situation, he refuses to be a passive victim. He uses his intellect and sarcasm to fight back, turning the tables on the landlady and exposing the absurdity of her position. It demonstrates his refusal to be silenced and his determination to assert his humanity.
Long Answer Questions
1. Why do you think that the poet has chosen the title Telephone Conversation? Is he justified in choosing this title? Give reasons to support your answer.
Answer: I think the poet has chosen an apt title for the poem. The title is exactly what it promises, which is a conversation between an African man and a presumably White British landlady about an accommodation for rent.
The conversation skilfully brings forth the theme of the poem, which is racism. It shows the ingrained mindset of certain people who discriminate on the grounds of race and, in particular, the colour of skin. The poem is not about a continuous give-and-take telephonic conversation. It becomes obvious from the fourth line, where the speaker confesses that he is from Africa, that the conversation between the two continues with pauses in between.
The telephone here symbolises the gap between the two ends of the line and the impossibility for both the ends to meet. Thus, the title is justified both literally and symbolically.
2. There are intervals of silence in the interaction between the African man and the landlady. What are the reasons for this silence? Give examples to support your answer.
Answer: The intervals of silence in the interaction occur for different reasons, stemming from the prejudice of the landlady and the shock of the speaker.
The first silence occurs after the speaker makes his self-confession that he is African. After he says this, complete silence ensues for a while. The prospective tenant considers this silence to be a result of the lady’s good-breeding, as she seems to be under pressure on how to deal with a person of African origin. The speaker hears a silenced transmission of pressurized good-breeding.
Another silence comes from the speaker himself. After the landlady asks how dark he is, he is so taken aback that he cannot talk. The speaker feels ashamed of his inability to respond, because the silence seems ill-mannered. This silence is a result of his being stunned and dumbfounded by the inappropriate and deeply racist question.
A third silence happens after the speaker responds that he is West African sepia. There is another awkward pause in the ongoing conversation. In this silence, the landlady tries to figure out what the speaker means by imagining a range of different colour options. This silence is caused by her ignorance and her attempt to process the information through her prejudiced lens.
3. What is the central theme of the poem? How has the author portrayed this theme?
Answer: The central theme of the poem is prejudice based on colour and race. Wole Soyinka exposes the prevalence of prejudices based on race and the colour of the skin and brings to light how such prejudices are covertly practiced by many people in society. He highlights the hypocritical nature of these people.
The author has portrayed this theme through a telephonic conversation between a prospective tenant, an African man, and a British landlady. The poem begins with the man making a ‘self-confession’ that he belongs to Africa, sounding ironical as the word confession is generally used with the revelation of something illegal. After the landlady realises the racial identity of the man, she keeps aside all formalities and directly enquires from him, HOW DARK…ARE YOU LIGHT OR VERY DARK?
The question is devastating for the man, as he can clearly see the racism. He feels disgusted and starts seeing red everywhere around him. He then sarcastically answers her question, stating that his skin colour can be pictured as West African sepia. When the lady remains perplexed, he further mocks her by stating that he is not all black; his face is brunette, the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet are peroxide blonde, and his bottom is raven black. The poem, in a sarcastic way, brings forth the racial hatred and discrimination that permeates society by showcasing the absurdity of all prejudices.
4. Do you think that the poem Telephone Conversation’ is based on the personal experience of the poet? Give reasons to support your answer.
Answer: Yes, I think the poem is based on the personal experience of the poet, Wole Soyinka, or at least the collective experience of people like him during that era.
Wole Soyinka was born in Nigeria in the 1930s and studied in England in the 1950s. As an African artist and intellectual living and working in a Western country, he would have faced the difficult conditions and racism that the poem describes. The poem represents the persistent and dispiriting difficulties colonised people had to endure while dealing with their colonisers, and how such difficulties diminished and dehumanised them.
Soyinka’s life and works are inseparable from their historical context. He was an outspoken critic of British colonialism and was deeply influenced by Nigeria’s struggle for independence. His works condemn racism and colonialism. The poem, while describing a single incident of racism, reflects the broader injustices that post-colonial artists and writers like Soyinka hoped to bring attention to. The poem’s biting wit and linguistic skill make a strong case for the resilience and brilliance of the people who endured such treatment, which is a reflection of Soyinka’s own defiance as a political activist. Therefore, it is very likely that the experience depicted in the poem is drawn from his own life.
5. Give a character sketch of the speaker as understood from the narrative given in the poem.
Answer: The speaker in the poem is an educated, intelligent, and witty African man who is confronted with blatant racism.
He is practical and aware of the prejudices in society. This is clear when he begins the conversation by making a ‘self-confession’ that he is African. He does this to avoid a ‘wasted journey’, showing he has likely faced such rejection before. Initially, he is polite, but he is left shocked and dumbfounded by the landlady’s crude question about his skin colour. He feels ‘shamed’ by his momentary, ‘ill-mannered silence’.
However, he quickly regains his composure and uses his intellect and wit to challenge and mock the landlady’s racism. Instead of being defeated, he turns her absurd question back on her by sarcastically asking if she means ‘like plain or milk chocolate?’. He then describes his skin in complex terms like ‘West African sepia’ and further satirizes her obsession by detailing the different colours of his body parts: a ‘brunette’ face, ‘peroxide blonde’ palms and soles, and a ‘raven black’ bottom. This demonstrates his sharp mind and his refusal to be dehumanised.
Ultimately, the speaker is resilient and morally self-assured. He exposes the landlady’s ignorance and prejudice, turning the tables on her. His final, ironic plea for her to ‘see for yourself’ shows his deep hurt but also his strength in confronting bigotry directly.
Additional/extra questions and answers
1. Explain the significance of the title “Telephone Conversation.”
Answer: The title “Telephone Conversation” significantly captures the essence of the poem, as it not only reflects the mundane activity around which the central event unfolds but also metaphorically signifies the distance and impersonality that can be present in human interactions. This medium of communication, which should ideally bridge gaps, ironically becomes the very site where racial prejudices are articulated and exposed. The telephone allows for a candid revelation of societal attitudes that might be more subtly veiled in face-to-face interactions, serving as a stark reminder of the enduring nature of racial biases even in the commonplace aspects of modern life.
33. How and when does the language and tone of the speaker change in the poem? What does it suggest?
Answer: The language and tone of the speaker change after the landlady’s intrusive question about his skin colour. From a straightforward and hopeful tone discussing the housing details, it shifts to one of irony and sarcasm. He uses satirical humour to cope with the uncomfortable situation and to mock the landlady’s prejudice. This change in tone reflects the speaker’s emotional transition from willingness to engage to a defensive stance, and it suggests his awareness of and anger towards the societal racism he encounters.
Additional/extra MCQs
1. What was Ernie Mill doing when he saw Bubber?
A. Delivering newspapers
B. Reading a book
C. Fixing papers for his route
D. Calling to his friends
Answer: C. Fixing papers for his route
35. When Bubber told Mrs Drew that this was his last visit to hers how did she react?
A. angrily
B. foolishly
C. behaved awkwardly
D. felt unhappy
Answer: D. felt unhappy
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In the line by line explanation I think button B,Button A actually refers to the two extreme choices of skin colour offered by the landlady to the speaker implying that either he may be very dark or very light. There’s no intermediate option … I hope i could express my view
Thanks
These notes are very helpful 😄 I never seen like these types of explanations In any other websites.
Thanks a lot 👍🏻