'D Man Wit D Blue Guitar'- Exploring Dialects

Objective Check: Understand and demonstrate awareness of invention and creativity as essential components of the writing process (sometimes includes visual&/or auditory &/or performance)

In her essay "Gumbo Ya Ya", Lena Ampadu implores us to respect the home language and culture of others. This journal entry allowed me to explore the versatility of my own home country's dialect, by using it to rewrite a poem. I was curious to see how I could get the same ideas across by using different word forms and expressions. I think this poem was a suitable choice because it relays a very simple story , and the candor of the man with the blue guitar is reflected well in the honest simplicity of Guyanese parlance. This piece is also good example of how I have fulfilled the abovementioned objective because a certain level of creativity is required in order to recreate an artform whilst still maintaining the general theme.

Prompt: Rewrite a poem in a dialect of your own choosing and be ready to defend your choice- in light of your own voice, your audience, your relation to the subject matter/ideas in the poem, and the effects you seek in your translation.

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The Man With the Blue Guitar

I

A man bent over his guitar resembling a shearsman. The day was green.

The people said “Hey man. You have a blue guitar. That means you don’t play about the way things are.”

The man said, “The way things are sounds different on this guitar.”

The people said, “Please! Let’s hear something foreign, but something we can still understand.”

II

Well, listen.

This world? I can’t really get it right; but I do try.

Sometimes I sing a hero’s head, big eyes and a bronze beard, but it’s still not a man,

Whenever I try, I almost reach man; never fully.

And if that means I can’t play the way things are,

Then that is just the tune of the man with the blue guitar.

Guyanese Dialect

D Man Wit d Blue Guitar

I

A man ben ovuh he guitar resemblin’ a shearsman. De day de green green.

De people seh “Ey man. You geh a blue guitar. Duh mean you doan play bout d way tings deh.”

De man seh, “D way tings deh does sound different pun dis guitar.”

Den d people seh, ‘Come nuh man! Lewwe hear sumting farren but sumting wuh we gun still understand.”

I

Well hear dis ting

This world hay? Ah cyan really get it right; but ah does try.

Sometimes ah does sing a hero head, big big eye and bronze beard, but is still not no man,

Whenever ah does try a lil ting,I does reach a good way to man- but nevuh full full.

If duh mean dat ah cyan play d way tings deh,

Dus just de chune of d man wit d blue guitar.