"Telephone Conversation" by Wole Soyinka (b.1934)

Summary:

"Wole Soyinka's 'Telephone Conversation' vividly portrays a telephone exchange between a black man seeking accommodation and a prejudiced landlady. The poem explores themes of racial discrimination, identity, and societal hypocrisy through sharp dialogue and vivid imagery. The speaker's witty responses and the landlady's ignorant questions reveal the absurdity and harm of racial prejudice, making a powerful commentary on race relations."

This poem remains a poignant critique of racism, challenging societal norms and attitudes towards race while highlighting the resilience and dignity of the speaker in the face of discrimination.

Line by line analysis:

1. "The price seemed reasonable, location / Indifferent."
• The speaker starts by mentioning that the price of the accommodation was acceptable and the location didn't matter much to him.
2. "The landlady swore she lived / Off premises."
• The landlady assures the speaker that she doesn't live on the property she is renting out, emphasizing her separation from the place.
3. "Nothing remained / But self-confession."
• This line suggests that the speaker feels compelled to disclose something personal or important.
4. "Madam," I warned, / "I hate a wasted journey--I am African."
• The speaker warns the landlady that he is African, possibly anticipating discrimination or prejudice.
5. Silence. / Silenced transmission of / Pressurized good-breeding."
• The silence that follows indicates the landlady's shock or hesitation upon hearing the speaker's ethnicity. The phrase "pressurized good-breeding" suggests an awkward attempt to maintain politeness despite uncomfortable circumstances.
6. "Voice, when it came, / Lipstick coated, long gold-rolled / Cigarette-holder pipped."
• The landlady's response is described with imagery suggesting affectation and artificiality, such as lipstick and a fancy cigarette holder, hinting at her upper-class pretensions.
7. "Caught I was, foully."
• The speaker feels caught or trapped in an uncomfortable situation, likely due to the landlady's prejudiced reaction.
8. "HOW DARK?" . . . I had not misheard . . . "ARE YOU LIGHT / OR VERY DARK?" Button B, Button A.
• The landlady asks intrusive and racially charged questions about the speaker's skin color, reducing him to mere categories ("Button B, Button A"), highlighting her ignorance and insensitivity.
9. "Stench / Of rancid breath of public hide-and-speak."
• This line suggests the unpleasantness and hypocrisy of public interactions tainted by prejudice and discrimination.
10. "Red booth. Red pillar box. Red double-tiered / Omnibus squelching tar. It was real!"
• The repetition of "red" emphasizes the vividness and reality of the setting, perhaps symbolizing the pervasive presence of racism in everyday life.
11. "Shamed / By ill-mannered silence, surrender / Pushed dumbfounded to beg simplification."
• The speaker feels ashamed and pressured to simplify his identity in the face of the landlady's blunt racism.
12. "Considerate she was, varying the emphasis-- / 'ARE YOU DARK? OR VERY LIGHT?' Revelation came."
• The landlady adjusts her question but remains fixated on the speaker's skin color, showing a clinical and detached curiosity.
13. "Her assent was clinical, crushing in its light / Impersonality."
• The landlady's indifferent response is described as clinical and emotionally crushing, emphasizing her lack of empathy or understanding.
14. "Rapidly, wave-length adjusted, / I chose. 'West African sepia'--and as afterthought, / 'Down in my passport.'"
• The speaker responds with a creative and evocative description of his skin tone, referencing "West African sepia," highlighting his pride in his heritage.
15. "Silence for spectroscopic / Flight of fancy, till truthfulness clanged her accent / Hard on the mouthpiece."
• The silence that follows suggests the landlady's inability to comprehend or appreciate the speaker's description, which clashes with her prejudiced assumptions.
16. "'WHAT'S THAT?' conceding / 'DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT IS.' 'Like brunette.' / 'THAT'S DARK, ISN'T IT?' 'Not altogether."
• The landlady struggles to understand the speaker's description, confirming her ignorance and narrow-mindedness.
17. "Facially, I am brunette, but, madam, you should see / The rest of me. Palm of my hand, soles of my feet / Are a peroxide blond."
• The speaker humorously points out the absurdity of judging someone's race solely by facial features, mentioning the natural variations in skin tone.
18. "Friction, caused-- / Foolishly, madam--by sitting down, has turned / My bottom raven black--One moment, madam!"--sensing / Her receiver rearing on the thunderclap / About my ears--"Madam," I pleaded, "wouldn't you rather / See for yourself?"
• The speaker continues to challenge the landlady's prejudiced assumptions, inviting her to witness the truth for herself, perhaps hoping to break through her ignorance.