This document provides a summary of a student paper on the concept of racism in the poem "You Laughed and Laughed and Laughed" by Nigerian poet Gabriel Okara. It includes background on the author, a definition of racism, an analysis of how the poem depicts racism through contrasting African and Western cultures, and videos showing examples of everyday racism. The student analyzes how Okara uses the laughter of white observers to portray their lack of understanding of African songs, dances, and customs in a post-colonial context.

1. NAME – NIYATI VYAS
ROLL NO. 14
SEM – 4
PAPER NAME – THE AFRICAN
LITERATURE
TOPIC – CONCEPT OF RACISM IN
YOU LAUGHED AND LAUGHED
AND LAUGHED
SUBMITTED TO – PROF. DILIPSIR
BARAD
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

2. 01
03
02
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABOUT AUTHOR WHAT IS RACISM
RACISM IN THE
POEM
04
VIDEOS OF
RACISM

3. GABRIEL IMOMOTIMI OKARA

4. GABRIEL OCARA
1. GABRIEL IMOMOTIMOI OCARA
1. Born- 24th April 1921
1. Death- 25th March 2019
1. Nigerian Poet and Novelist
1. The first modernist poet of Anglophone Africa
1. Best novel THE VOICE (1964(
1. Best poetry THE FISHERMEN’S INVOCATION (1978)
1. THE DREAMER, HIS VISION (2005)
1. THE NIGERIAN NEGRITUDIST

5. 1. Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different
behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can
be divided based on the superiority of one race over another.
1. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism
directed against other people because they are of a different
race or ethnicity.
1. Modern variants of racism are often based in social
perceptions of biological differences between peoples. These
views can take the form of social actions, practices or beliefs,
or political systems in which different races are ranked as
inherently superior or inferior to each other, based on
presumed shared inheritable traits, abilities, or qualities.
WHAT IS RACISM?

6. “At the heart of racism is the religious
assertion that God made a creative
mistake when He brought some people
into being.”
- FRIEDRICH OTTO HERTZ

7. RACISM IN THE POEM
• Nigerian poet Gabriel Okara's poem 'You laughed
and laughed and laughed' brings out an emotion,
feeling and pain faced by black people. This poem
also brings out the sufferings faced by black
people.
• They were laughed by white for their songs, dance and
music which brought out their inner feelings of black
natives which also brought out their emotions..
• Okara contrasting the olden black indigenous cultur
e of Africa with the white people bring tolight the iss
ues pertaining to racism, colonialism and post-
colonialism, poor life and modernadvanced culture i
n a very light way full of laugh and joke. The tales o
f Africa are different fromthose of history, culture an
d living of the white peoples.

8. Okara contrasting the olden black indigenous culture of Africa wit
h the white people bring tolight the issues pertaining to racism, co
lonialism and post-
colonialism, poor life and modernadvanced culture in a very light
way full of laugh and joke. The tales of Africa are different fromth
ose of history, culture and living of the white peoples.
The Africantales, songs and dances to the white ear may be plea
sing or may not be pleasing as because this isnot their arena.
• His songs appear harsh and jazz, too much loudjust like a mot
or car misfiringand stopping, seem to be choking. But hearing i
t, you laugh and laugh. To the western white people his appea
rance and walk may incite bizarre opinions, many make you
burst into a laughter.

9. The indigenous songs of Africa and the African people
s they may not understand itwhat the song says it,
what does it mean.
Again, he gives a magic dance and the drums starttal
king, so full of loud beats and human thuds, so voc
al and vociferous and hearing it the western person
a covering the eyes and having covered, smiles an
d laughs and laughs.
The white man moves into car and sits andlaughs and
laughs from there. With the beating and singing of
songs, skies keep unfolding, manya door opening a
nd the skies and the earth become one and he see
ms to be approaching with themystic vision of own
doing the rounds which but the foreigner cannot the
nuances andidiosyncrasies of the native speech-

10. The Africans take the things in their way and the white pe
oplein their own way of scrutiny and reflection as far as tr
aditions are concerned, racial, archetypal,indigenous and
ethnic.
Everything is but cold and dead with no room for earthly c
ontacts andrealities in the western world.
And now it’s my turn to laugh; but my laughter is notice-
block laughter. For Iknow not cars, know not ice-blocks.
My laughter is the fireof the eye of the sky, the fireof the e
arth, the fire of the air,the fire of the seas and therivers fis
hes animals treesand it thawed your inside,thawed your v
oice, thawed your ears, thawed your eyes and thawed

11. If they are mod
sophisticated and developed, urban, mechanical an
d up-to-
date, they have something to take in their way, but
th
E tales of the Dark Continent, that isAfrica will not be t
he same. There is difference in it all and these may
not suit their modernity,urban life and living. But hi
s is an open space of open living as has learnt live i
n communities in
the villages and hamlets under the open skies with
out modern-day comforts and pleasure.
But the western, white people have the world of their
own.
The poet says to him that this is the land of his where
he was born, his ancestors lived and grewup. So, h
is is a special attachment which he cannot forgo th

12. Videos
of
Racism

13. Here the video shows us that
when a black man tries to
wash his hand the water
didn't come out but when he
puts a white tissue under the
tap then the water comes
out.

14. In this video there is a
scene of hospital where the
doctor came for checkup
and he speaks that “Next is
the Brown family “ then he
realise that it is not good to
talk like that and he reveals
that “Sometimes i write
discription of my patients
to remember them” then
the man replies that “Its ok
all us name is Brown”.

15. CITATION
Dennis, R.M. (2004). "Racism". In Kuper, A.; Kuper, J. (eds.). The Social Science
Encyclopedia, Volume 2 (3rd ed.). London; New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-35969-
1..
Ghani, Navid (2008). "Racism". In Schaefer, Richard T. (ed.). Encyclopedia of Race, Ethnicity,
and Society. SAGE. pp. 1113–1115. ISBN 978-1-4129-2694-2.
"Renowned Poet and Novelist, Gabriel Okara, Dies Just Before 98th Birthday", Olisa TV, 25
March 2019.
M, Ajitha. (2019). Racism Faced by Natives with Reference to Gabriel Okara's You Laughed And
Laughed And Laughed. Language in India , 19(9).
Petergriffin ( 11 December
2021).https://www.instagram.com/reel/CXULLvXgUHi/?utm_medium=copy_link
Buramaa13 (03 December
2021).https://www.instagram.com/reel/CXULLvXgUHi/?utm_medium=copy_link

16. THANK YOU… .