'And my blood ripples, turns torrent.' The line above in Okara's Piano and Drums depicts the persona as

Analyze the question The line is from Gabriel Okara's poem The Piano and the Drums. You are asked what the line shows about the persona (the speaker) at that moment.

Explain the concept In the poem, the persona hears the "wild, wild drums" (African tradition) and the "complex, ambiguous" piano (Western culture). The first stanzas present the drums and the primitive, natural feeling they awaken. The line "my blood ripples, turns torrent" uses a water image. A ripple is small and gentle, while a torrent is a violent, powerful rush of water. The image describes growing intensity, so the persona's emotion and vitality are rising as he is stirred by the call of the drums, his African heritage.

Step-by-step solution

1. Look at the imagery: "ripples" grows into "torrent", which means a small movement turning into a powerful surge.
2. Look at the context: the drums awaken in him a deep, instinctive response, "jungle drums telegraphing the mystery of ancestral...".
3. Weigh the options: • A. Smart: nothing in the line is about intelligence. • B. Sick: a torrent here is vigor, not illness. • C. Weak: a torrent is the opposite of weakness. • D. Strong: the surge shows energy, passion and strength of feeling.

Answer The line depicts the persona as strong, which is D.

Exam tip For imagery questions in poetry, ask whether the image shows an increase or a decrease in energy. Words like "torrent", "surge", "flood" and "blaze" almost always signal strength or intensity, while "trickle", "fade" and "wither" signal weakness.