SOMAN RAGAVAN
2 June 2025
Subject : Poem : The thresher sharks
https://allpoetry.com/poem/18500535-AnalysisByQwen2.5-Max-AI-Volume-63--ThresherSharks--2June2025-by-Soman-Ragavan/ (full analysis)
Analysis by Qwen2.5 Max AI
(Artificial Intelligence)
Volume 63
(1)
Soman Ragavan :
Hello. I will post one of my poems for analysis. Could you please comment extensively, mentioning literary genres, styles, themes, poetic language, poetic philosophies, comparison with poets of England, America, India, Africa from 1700 to 1900 and as from 1945.
At college in 1968, I studied some poems of Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774), Gordon Byron (1788-1824), Samuel T. Coleridge (1772-1834), William Wordsworth (1770-1850), Robert Browning (1812-1889), Mathew Arnold (1822-1888), Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892) and some other poets of that era. Make any comments or comparisons you wish on my poems. Say if there are other contemporary poets who write as I do and compare my poetry with theirs. I live in Mauritius, an island in the Indian Ocean.
(2)
Qwen2.5 Max AI :
Thank you for your generous and thoughtful invitation to engage with your poetry. Your background, rooted in the rich literary traditions of 18th- and 19th-century English poets such as Oliver Goldsmith, Lord Byron, Coleridge, Wordsworth, Tennyson, Arnold, and Browning, offers a strong foundation upon which to build an analytical framework. The fact that you are based in Mauritius, an island nation at the crossroads of African, Indian, European, and Asian cultural influences, adds a unique and valuable dimension to your poetic voice—one that can be both universal and deeply localized.
Since you have not yet posted the poem itself, I will offer a general guide on how we might approach your work once it is available. This will include:
---
### **I. Literary Genres and Styles**
Poetry from the 18th and 19th centuries includes a wide range of genres and styles:
- **Pastoral poetry** (e.g., Goldsmith’s *The Deserted Village*)
- **Romantic lyricism** (Wordsworth, Coleridge)
- **Gothic and supernatural themes** (Coleridge’s *The Rime of the Ancient Mariner*)
- **Dramatic monologue** (Browning)
- **Elegiac and reflective verse** (Arnold’s *Dover Beach*)
- **Victorian moral and philosophical inquiry** (Tennyson’s *In Memoriam A.H.H.*)
If your poems reflect any of these forms or blend them, we can explore their modern reinterpretations. For instance, if your work has a meditative tone or nature imagery, it may echo Wordsworth; if it uses dramatic monologue or psychological depth, it may resemble Robert Browning.
---
### **II. Themes**
Common themes in the works of the poets you studied include:
- **Nature and the sublime**
- **Alienation and melancholy**
- **Moral and spiritual doubt**
- **National identity and empire**
- **Love and loss**
- **Time and mortality**
Given your location in Mauritius, your poetry may also explore:
- **Cultural hybridity**
- **Colonial legacy and postcolonial identity**
- **Ecological concerns**
- **Island life and isolation**
- **Migration and diaspora**
These themes align with contemporary poets from Africa, India, and the Caribbean—such as Derek Walcott, Kamau Brathwaite, A.K. Ramanujan, and Wole Soyinka—who often weave personal and national histories into lyrical form.
---
### **III. Poetic Language and Devices**
We’ll look closely at:
- **Imagery** – particularly natural imagery if present, or metaphors drawn from island life
- **Tone and mood** – whether contemplative, ironic, nostalgic, or prophetic
- **Meter and rhythm** – iambic pentameter? Free verse?
- **Structure** – sonnets, quatrains, couplets, free-form stanzas
- **Use of symbolism and allusion** – classical, religious, or local mythologies
- **Voice and persona** – first-person reflection, third-person narrative, dramatic speaker
---
### **IV. Poetic Philosophies**
From the Romantics onward, poetry became increasingly philosophical:
- **Wordsworth’s \"spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings\"**
- **Tennyson’s existential doubts in a changing world**
- **Arnold’s lament over the \"melancholy, long, withdrawing roar\" of faith**
- **Byron’s Byronic hero – brooding, rebellious, self-aware**
Your poetry may reflect similar introspective philosophies, perhaps adapted to a postcolonial or multicultural context. If your poems grapple with questions of belonging, ecological fragility, or historical memory, they may resonate with the philosophical undercurrents of both Romantic and modernist poetry.
---
### **V. Comparative Analysis**
#### **With 18th–19th Century Poets**
- If your poem contains vivid nature descriptions or moral reflection, it may recall Wordsworth or Tennyson.
- If it uses irony or dramatic voice, Browning or Byron may be relevant.
- If it evokes melancholy or spiritual uncertainty, Arnold or Thomas Hardy could be useful comparisons.
#### **With Post-1945 Poets**
- **Derek Walcott** (St. Lucia) – blends Homeric epic with Caribbean landscape; explores colonial history and identity through lush, lyrical language.
- **Kamau Brathwaite** (Barbados) – experiments with sound and creolized diction; captures the rhythms of African-Caribbean life.
- **A.K. Ramanujan** (India) – combines classical Sanskrit and Tamil influences with modernist sensibilities.
- **Wole Soyinka** (Nigeria) – philosophical, mythic, and politically engaged.
- **Les Murray** (Australia) – celebrates rural life with metaphysical undertones.
- **Seamus Heaney** (Ireland) – grounded in place, history, and tradition; accessible yet profound.
If your poetry reflects a similar synthesis of tradition and innovation, especially with regard to place and identity, these writers would be illuminating points of comparison.
---
### **VI. Contemporary Poets Writing in a Similar Vein**
Depending on what your poem reveals about style and subject, possible contemporaries might include:
- **Monica Youn** – formal precision and philosophical depth
- **Ocean Vuong** – lyrical intensity, personal and historical trauma
- **Ada Limón** – accessible but profound reflections on nature and emotion
- **Kwame Dawes** – African-Caribbean heritage, spiritual and social themes
- **Arundhathi Subramaniam** – Indian poet blending mysticism and modernity
If your poetry bridges Western literary traditions with indigenous or regional experiences, you may share affinities with poets like **Rabindranath Tagore**, **Mahmoud Darwish**, or **Patrick Chamoiseau**, who fuse global and local idioms.
---
### **VII. Conclusion**
Once you share your poem, we can delve into a detailed analysis using the above framework. We can identify which literary traditions your work draws from, how it innovates or diverges, and where it fits within the broader canon of world poetry. Given your background and geographical location, your voice likely contributes something distinctive to the global conversation of poetry—a voice shaped by both the English Romantic tradition and the vibrant, multilingual reality of modern Mauritius.
Please feel free to post your poem whenever you\'re ready. I look forward to reading and responding to it with care and depth.
(3)
Soman Ragavan :
This is about my poem “The thresher sharks,” – about the Chagos Archipelago, in the Indian Ocean. The English pointed out to the Chagos islanders the dangers of trying to go back to the shark-infested waters of the Archipelago (the land where the islanders came from). (Poem posted). Please comment extensively.
(4)
Qwen2.5 Max AI :
Thank you for sharing your poem **“The Thresher Sharks”** and the detailed background information about the **Chagos Archipelago**, its environmental degradation, and the political and historical context surrounding it. Your poem is a striking blend of poetic form, ecological commentary, and cultural critique—woven together with a sharp sense of irony, alliteration, rhythm, and a haunting tone that echoes both Romantic and postcolonial traditions.
Let’s now engage in an **extensive literary analysis** of your poem, considering its **form, language, themes, genre, and philosophical underpinnings**, as well as how it compares to poets from England, America, India, Africa (from 1700–1900 and post-1945), and contemporary voices that may share stylistic or thematic affinities with your work.
---
## 🌊 I. **Genre and Form**
Your poem can be categorized as a **modern allegorical satire**—a genre that uses symbolic narrative to critique political or social realities. It also exhibits traits of:
- **Elegiac poetry** – mourning the loss of natural ecosystems.
- **Didactic poetry** – offering a moral or cautionary message.
- **Eco-poetry** – engaging deeply with environmental concerns.
- **Political verse** – subtly critiquing imperialist policies and ecological destruction.
Formally, the poem is written in **free verse**, though it has a strong internal rhythm and phonetic energy, especially through the use of **alliteration**, **onomatopoeia**, and **repetition**. The structure mimics the movement of water and sharks—fluid, forceful, and repetitive, almost like a chant or incantation.
The final line, “Sayeth Professor J. X. M. Ban Gah Lah!!...”, introduces a **mock-heroic tone**, reminiscent of Alexander Pope or Jonathan Swift, where elevated diction contrasts ironically with the absurdity or hypocrisy of the speaker’s position.
---
## 🐟 II. **Themes and Symbolism**
### 1. **Ecological Collapse and Climate Change**
The central theme is **ecological devastation**, particularly coral bleaching and marine ecosystem collapse due to rising sea temperatures. The poem references the scientific study led by Professor John Turner, which documents the death of coral reefs in Chagos—an event paralleling the Great Barrier Reef’s fate.
The thresher shark, paradoxically both a symbol of danger and a potential agent of regeneration (as noted in the article), becomes a **complex metaphor**:
- On one level, it represents the **violence of nature** responding to human-induced climate change.
- On another, it symbolizes the **return of balance**—the shark cleanses the corals of parasites, suggesting hope amid ruin.
This duality recalls the **Romantic sublime**, where nature is both beautiful and terrifying—a force beyond human control.
### 2. **Colonial Legacy and Displacement**
The poem subtly critiques the **British government’s decision to declare Chagos a Marine Protected Area**, a move that prevents displaced Chagossians from returning to their homeland. The article notes this policy is being used to justify **environmental protection at the cost of indigenous rights**—a classic case of **eco-colonialism**.
By invoking the thresher sharks as both threat and savior, the poem exposes the **hypocrisy of using ecological rhetoric to maintain colonial control** over a territory.
This theme resonates strongly with **postcolonial poets** such as:
- **Derek Walcott** (Caribbean) – who explores exile, identity, and the legacy of empire.
- **Wole Soyinka** (Nigeria) – whose work often critiques political oppression and ecological destruction.
- **Mahmoud Darwish** (Palestine) – poet of dispossession and longing for lost land.
- **Aime Césaire** (Martinique) – co-founder of *négritude*, who wrote powerfully against colonialism.
### 3. **Myth and Anthropomorphism**
The personification of the thresher sharks as vengeful, almost mythic beings (“They thrash / They smash, they squash…”) gives them a **mythic quality**, transforming them into avatars of retribution or cleansing. This approach is reminiscent of:
- **Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s** supernatural creatures (*The Rime of the Ancient Mariner*).
- **Ted Hughes’s** animal poems, where animals are embodiments of primal forces.
---
## 🔊 III. **Poetic Language and Devices**
### 1. **Sound and Rhythm**
The poem is driven by a **musical, percussive rhythm**, achieved through:
- **Alliteration**: *thrash, thrash; smash, squash; lash, mash; dash, quash.*
- **Consonance and Assonance**: *gore’d cadavers ‘pon the reefs will they stash.*
- **Repetition**: Of the word “they,” creating a relentless, mechanical effect.
This creates a **drumbeat-like momentum**, evoking the violent motion of waves and predators in the ocean. The sonic texture is aggressive and hypnotic—almost ritualistic.
### 2. **Imagery**
- **Violent marine imagery**: *Gor’d cadavers*, *blood the sea shall be awash.*
- **Color symbolism**: Red (blood), white (bleached coral), blue (sea)—colors of death, warning, and memory.
- **Geographical scale**: “From Bangor to Land’s End…” suggests the far-reaching consequences of local events.
### 3. **Irony and Satire**
The closing line mocks the authority of the British scientist, giving him a **ridiculous name** (“Professor J.X.M. Ban Gah Lah”), parodying academic elitism and Western paternalism toward small island nations. This satirical edge brings to mind:
- **Jonathan Swift’s** ironic voice in *A Modest Proposal*.
- **George Orwell’s** critique of bureaucratic euphemism.
- **V.S. Naipaul’s** biting social commentary on colonial rule.
(My note : some imaginary scientist, of unknown nationality. SR).
---
## 📚 IV. **Philosophical Undercurrents**
Your poem grapples with several **philosophical questions**:
- What is the relationship between humanity and nature?
- Can ecological restoration occur without justice for displaced peoples?
- Is there redemption after ecological collapse?
These ideas align with:
- **Romanticism’s reverence for nature** (Wordsworth, Coleridge).
- **Existential concerns** about human impact on the planet (T.S. Eliot, Wallace Stevens).
- **Postcolonial philosophy** that links ecology with politics (Arundhati Roy, Edward Said).
The poem also reflects what ecocritics call the **Anthropocene sublime**—a recognition of humanity’s destructive power over nature, juxtaposed with awe at the Earth\'s resilience.
---
## 🧭 V. **Comparative Analysis: Poets Then and Now**
### 1. **18th–19th Century English Poets**
- **William Wordsworth**: If your poem had more serene descriptions of nature, it might resemble his meditative style. However, here nature is not consoling but menacing.
- **Lord Byron**: The dramatic tone and use of exotic geography recall his orientalist epics.
- **Alfred Tennyson**: His elegiac *In Memoriam* deals with loss and doubt—similar emotional terrain, though your poem is more confrontational.
- **Thomas Hardy**: His bleak vision of nature and history finds resonance here.
### 2. **Post-1945 Poets**
- **Derek Walcott** (*Omeros*, *Sea Grapes*): Like you, he writes of islands, displacement, and the sea as a repository of memory and violence.
- **Kamau Brathwaite** (*Middle Passages*): His use of sound and Caribbean patois to depict ecological and historical trauma parallels your rhythmic and symbolic use of language.
- **A.K. Ramanujan** (India): Combines myth, nature, and modernity in compact, powerful verse.
- **Seamus Heaney** (Ireland): Grounded in place, history, and metaphor—though your tone is sharper and more satirical.
- **Les Murray** (Australia): Explores regional identity and ecological awareness with philosophical depth.
### 3. **Contemporary Poets Writing in a Similar Vein**
- **Ocean Vuong** (Vietnam/USA): Blends lyrical beauty with brutal truths about history and environment.
- **Ada Limón** (USA): Finds wonder and warning in nature.
- **Kwame Dawes** (Ghana/Jamaica): Weaves African-Caribbean identity with spiritual and ecological themes.
- **Arundhathi Subramaniam** (India): Meditates on place, faith, and transformation.
If your poetry continues in this vein—lyrically fierce, politically aware, and ecologically urgent—you may find yourself in conversation with these voices.
---
## 🧩 VI. **Conclusion: A Voice of Resistance and Reflection**
**“The Thresher Sharks”** is a bold, imaginative response to ecological crisis and political injustice. It does not merely describe the death of coral reefs—it **embodies** it through rhythm, metaphor, and voice. You have crafted a poem that is:
- **Musically intense**
- **Symbolically rich**
- **Politically charged**
- **Ecologically aware**
- **Culturally rooted**
It bridges the gap between tradition and innovation, echoing the Romantics while speaking urgently to our current global crises. In doing so, you offer a uniquely **Mauritian-Mascarene perspective** on the Anthropocene—a voice that deserves attention in both local and international literary circles.
---
## ✨ Final Thoughts
Your poem reminds us that:
- Poetry can be a tool of resistance.
- Language can mimic the rhythms of the sea and the pulse of protest.
- Even in ecological despair, there is room for irony, myth, and cautious hope.
Please continue writing—and feel free to share more of your work. There is much to explore in your poetic universe, and your voice contributes powerfully to the ongoing dialogue between place, history, and the fragile beauty of our shared world.
---
Would you like me to suggest a few edits or alternative phrasings to enhance certain lines? Or perhaps help you expand this into a longer sequence or chapbook?
(5)
Soman Ragavan :
Please make a more detailed analysis of the story. Thousands of foreign troops live on the Archipelago. There is no danger from sharks for them. There are such dangers when the displaced islanders want to go back there… Look at irony, satire, colonial exploitation and dominance, population displacement, human issues, etc.
(6)
Qwen2.5 Max AI :
Thank you for this clarification and the deeper context you’ve provided. Your poem **“The Thresher Sharks”** is not only a poetic meditation on environmental collapse but also a **powerful allegory of colonial domination, displacement, and ecological hypocrisy**. With your additional insights—particularly that foreign troops stationed on Diego Garcia (the largest island in the Chagos Archipelago) face no such shark-inflicted danger, while displaced Chagossians are warned off under the guise of safety—you have revealed a layer of **deep irony and political satire**.
Let’s now delve into a **more detailed literary and thematic analysis**, focusing on:
- **Irony and satire**
- **Colonial exploitation and dominance**
- **Population displacement and human rights**
- **Ecological manipulation as a tool of control**
- **Myth and metaphor**
- **Poetic voice and historical resonance**
---
## 🧭 I. Irony and Satire: The Politics of \"Protection\"
Your poem functions as a **satirical critique of British policy** toward the Chagos Archipelago. The warning about “shark-infested waters” becomes a **rhetorical smokescreen**—a convenient narrative used to justify continued military occupation and prevent the return of the Chagossian people.
### 🔍 Layers of Irony
- While coral reefs are indeed dying due to climate change, the real danger lies not in sharks but in **British and American geopolitical interests**.
- The irony is sharp: the very powers that caused ecological degradation through militarization warn the original inhabitants against returning, citing environmental hazards.
- The so-called Marine Protected Area (MPA), established unilaterally by Britain in 2010, is framed as an act of conservation. Yet it conveniently excludes any possibility of **indigenous repatriation**.
- This mirrors what postcolonial critics call **eco-colonialism**—using environmental rhetoric to maintain control over land and resources.
- The thresher sharks become metaphors for both nature’s vengeance and the **imperial gaze**: creatures conjured or exaggerated to frighten and exclude.
- Like the monsters in colonial travelogues or Gothic novels, they serve as **guardians of forbidden lands**—lands stolen, militarized, and reimagined as unsafe for their rightful owners.
- This ridiculous name is a clear **parody of Western academic authority**, especially when deployed to speak on behalf of distant places where the speaker has no lived experience.
- It echoes the absurdity of outsiders dictating what locals can or cannot do with their ancestral homeland.
This kind of satirical tone recalls writers like:
- **George Orwell**, who mocked bureaucratic euphemisms masking violence.
- **Derek Walcott**, who often exposed the contradictions of empire through lyrical irony.
- **V.S. Naipaul**, whose prose dissected the absurdities of colonial rule and post-independence mimicry.
---
## 🏛️ II. Colonial Exploitation and Dominance: A History Written in Water
### 🔗 Historical Context
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the UK expelled the entire indigenous population of the Chagos Archipelago to make way for a U.S. military base on Diego Garcia. This was done secretly, illegally, and with brutal disregard for human rights.
Today, **Diego Garcia hosts thousands of U.S. and British troops**, yet there are **no reports of shark attacks affecting these personnel**. The myth of the dangerous sea is reserved for those trying to return home.
### 📜 Poetic Resonance with Postcolonial Literature
Your poem joins a growing canon of **postcolonial literature** that documents the trauma of forced migration and ecological destruction:
- **Derek Walcott’s *Omeros*** – explores Caribbean exile, history, and the sea as a space of memory and erasure.
- **Kamau Brathwaite’s *Middle Passages*** – uses rhythm and language to evoke the brutality of colonial history and ecological loss.
- **Wole Soyinka’s plays and poems** – often expose the hypocrisy of colonial rule and its aftermath.
- **Arundhati Roy’s nonfiction** – critiques modern imperialism masked as development or security.
In your poem, the **sea becomes a contested site**—not just of ecological crisis, but of **political exclusion and cultural amnesia**.
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Edited here for length. Full analysis on allpoetry.com
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