Kumukanda

By: Kayo Chingonyi

Summary

„Kumukanda‟ by Kayo Chingonyi speaks on how children grow up in two different cultures and how the
poet‟s own life turned out because of this.

The poem begins with the speaker explaining that there is a ritual he didn‟t participate in. Some people,
upon learning this, would see him as someone who never threw off the bounds of childhood. He does not
say if he believes it one way or another, that is, until the second stanza when he explains how he
transitioned into adulthood.

It was a piecemeal transition, rather than an all at once crossing of a river. He recalls caring for his dying
mother, attending her funeral, and not receiving comfort when he needed it.

Now, he considers how in an alternate life he would‟ve grown up had he stayed in Zambia. The present
and imagined versions of himself would likely seem strange to one another, unable to comprehend
language or “literary pretensions.”

Themes:

- Identity
- Relationships
- Childhood

Analysis of Kumukanda
Stanza One

“Since I haven’t danced among my fellow initiates,

following a looped procession from woods at the edge
of a village, Tata’s people would think me unfinished —
a child who never sloughed off the childish estate
to cross the river boys of our tribe must cross
in order to die and come back grown.”

In the first stanza of „Kumukanda,’ which means “initiation,” the speaker, who is the poet himself, begins
with one long sentence. It tells of something he hasn‟t done, a cultural ritual that “Tata‟s people” would
look down on the speaker for not doing. Without saying it explicitly, this is a reference to the Luvale tribe
in Zambia, where the poet Chingonyi is from. In particular, the speaker is describing a ritual in which
boys walk in a “looped procession.” They follow a path from the “woods at the edge / of a village.”

Without having completed this ritual, which gets more complex by the end of the stanza, the speaker
knows others would think him incomplete. It is important to note that he does not call himself
“unfinished,” this is just the perception of “Tata‟s people.” "Tata" is a Zambian expression meaning
"father." Here,

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Chingonyi reflects on the process of Kumukanda and how he would be viewed by the Zambian
community for not participating in this custom. The adjective "unfinished" indicates how the speaker
feels disconnected and isolated from his Zambian culture and heritage. Moreover, perhaps the adjective
also communicates how the narrator is still a youth in the eyes of the Zambian community - his transition
into adulthood "unfinished." The caesura "-" forces us to reflect on the subdued connotations of this
adjective as well as allowing us to glean Chingonyi's own feelings of guilt and regret.

He goes on to describe the ritual as one that takes a boy from childhood to manhood. Without completing
it, some would say that he “never sloughed” or shed, the “childish estate” of his youth. The ritual includes
a crossing of a river. It represents death, and then rebirth as a man when one crosses back over. The
auxiliary verb "must" communicates the social and traditional obligation of the "Kumukanda." The
speaker's isolation and feelings of remorse are made apparent as he did not undergo the same process as
the other boys in the community. The noun "river" is symbolic of rebirth, purity and tranquillity and thus
paints a vivid image in our minds as readers, highlighting how the Kumukanda ceremony is one of
ceremony and celebration. The verb "die" is not used literally, and instead represents the metaphorical
"death" of childhood, as boys become men.

Stanza Two

“I was raised in a strange land, by small increments:

when I bathed my mother the days she was too weak,
when auntie broke the news and I chose a yellow suit
and white shoes to dress my mother’s body,
at the grave-side when the man I almost grew to call
dad, though we both needed a hug, shook my hand.”

In the second stanza of „Kumukanda’ the speaker turns to his own life. He was “raised in a strange land.”
It is strange from the perceptive of someone from Zambia, and from, as he later states, an “alternate self.”
He grew from a boy into a man in “small increments.” It was not one larger ceremony in which he was
instantaneously transformed. Instead, it came as he bathed his dying mother on the “days she was too
weak.”

He grew older when his aunt told him that his mother had died. The speaker picked out a yellow suit and
“white shoes to dress [his] mother‟s body.” These are things that no child should have to do.

There is another moment that is transformative to the speaker. It occurred when he was standing at the
“grave-side” with the man who almost became a real dad to him. This person, rather than hugging the
speaker, shook his hand. These poignant moments of love and loss changed his life. They are not the
same as those he would‟ve experienced had he stayed in Zambia, but they are important nonetheless.

Here, the juxtaposition between the speaker's two conflicting identities is made apparent. While the word
"Tata" originates from traditional Zambian language, the expression "dad" is colloquially British.
Furthermore, we also gain a sense of the phlegmatic atmosphere of the scene Chingonyi narrates. The
action of "shaking hands" is typically formal and emphasizes the quality of a "stiff upper-lip." The latter
is a characteristic typical of British culture, as Britons are known to repress emotions. Thus, we not only
see the significance of both identities to the speaker, but also the conflict between them in terms of
cultural and social norms.

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In the second stanza. Chingonyi reflects on how losing his parents was a blunt, raw initiation into
manhood, which contrasts the experience of the Zambian boys: while "Kumukanda" is a ceremony of life
and vibrancy, Chingonyi's transition into manhood was marked by death and grief.

The structural ordering of the line initially creates the impression he was choosing an outfit for himself.
This expectation is of course, harshly subverted as we learn of his mother's death, this ordering of words
adding gravitas to the emotional burden and responsibility placed on the speaker. Moreover, the adjective
"yellow" denotes warmth, happiness and joy, which is coupled with the adjective "white" which
represents peace and purity. These vibrant colours are characteristic of Zambian culture: we observe
how the narrator experiences conflict within his identity, as elements of his African heritage still influence
his British upbringing.

Stanza Three

“If my alternate self, who never left, could see me

what would he make of these literary pretensions,
this need to speak with a tongue that isn’t mine?
Would he be strange to me as I to him, frowning
as he greets me in the language of my father
and my father’s father and my father’s father’s father?”

In the final stanza of „Kumukanda’ the speaker addresses the idea of an “alternate self.” This person
would not have left his home in Zambia. Instead, he would have grown up, completed the ceremonies,
and led a very different life up until this point where the two metaphorically meet. The speaker imagines
this second version of himself looking at his “literary pretensions” and the need to “speak in a tongue”
that isn‟t his. He knows that this other self would judge him, see these things are foreign, a waste of time,
or something worse.

Then, the speaker turns the judgment around and considers what he‟d think of the Zambian self, the one
who did not move away. This man would speak in the language of his fathers, and the poem‟s speaker
would not understand. There is something gained and something lost on both sides, and the speaker does
not say which is better. They are two different lives he had in his reach, and he chose.

The repetition at the end of the poem does suggest something about heritage though, and perhaps a regret
for disconnection with that heritage. The use of the word “father” six times suggests at once an
amusement with the idea, and a lack where a cultural connection should or could be.

The noun "father" can be interpreted as wordplay as it is very similar to the word "farther." This play on
words emphasizes the alienation the narrator feels of his Zambian identity. This phrase also highlights
how the family line and ancestry was broken by Chingonyi's decision to remain in the UK. At the end of
the novel, we are left with the speaker's flux, confusion and indecision over his identity and it seems there
has not been much developed. The rhetorical question at the end of the poem constructs a cyclical
structure, as we are also left feeling "unfinished" by the end of the performance.

Each stanza represents a different aspect of the speaker's identity. The first stanza recounts his Zambian
heritage, the second stanza depicts his British upbringing while the final stanza represents the confusion
and discomfort Chingonyi feels for his fractured identity. The stanzas are each self-contained, regular
sestets - their separate and distinct quality reflecting how the speaker cannot, in reality, belong to both
identities, but can do so in the space of the poem.

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