Question

Summary of the poem night rain by john pepper clark

Answer 1

When rain clouds gather follows the protagonist Makhaya, who crosses the border from South Africa to Botswana to search for his "Utopia". Along the way he meets Dinorego, an old wise man who lives in the village of Golema Mmidi. Dinorego introduces the villagers to Makhaya, in particular to Gilbert, a brilliant white man who has the knowledge to turn Golema Mmidi into a developed co-operative but lacks the social skills to involve the villagers. That's where Makhaya comes in. He and Gilbert become friends and Makhaya is employed by Gilbert to work with the tractor and help the women with the cash-crops. One woman who catches Makhaya's attention is the independent and fierce Paulina. Meanwhile, readers learn that Gilbert has always liked DInergro's daughter Maria. After a misinteprated silence from Makhaya Gilbert asks Maria's hand in marrige and she accepts. We also learn more about Makhya's history as the "black dog" who everyone mistreated and his desire to rid Africa of the white men and become rich. In later chapters the cattle are dying because it has not rained for so long. Death is in the atmosphere when Paulina's son Isaac dies at the cattle post. In the last chapter Paulina marries Makhaya and Matenge, the antagonist who symbolizes tribalism , kills himself

Answer 2

The poem talks about rain falling in the night and the effects of it on a small boy, the other brothers, the mother and the small impoverished abode.