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In the Midst of Hardship

Latiff Mohidin (Malaysia)


Motivation:
Give the common
expressions/attitudes of
Asians when faced with
disaster
.
History of Malaysian Literature
Malaysian literature is typically written in any of the country’s four main
languages: Malay, English, Chinese, and Tamil.
It portrays various aspects of Malaysian life.
Early Malays literature was influenced by Indian epics, such as the
Mahabharata and the Ramayana.
begins with the coming of Islam in the late 15th century; no literary works
dating from the Hindu period (4th to late 15th centuries) have survived
The earliest works of Malaysian literature were transmitted orally in the
absence of writing scripts.
By the 19th century, written literature occurred.
Traditional Malay poetry was used for entertainment and the recording of
history and laws
Three Forms of Traditional Malay Poetry
Mantera
 sacred message of a text; repeated word or phrase in
meditation (e.g “Om”, “Om Namo”) Pantun
 a traditional oral form of expression
 consists of a quatrain which employs an abab rhyme
scheme Syair
 can be a narrative poem, a didactic poem, or a
poem used to convey ideas on religion or philosophy, or
even one to describe historical event
Latiff Mohidin
 He is a poet and a painter
who was born in Seremban,
Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. He
has been known as a “Boy
Wonder” since he was 11
because of the artistry of his
works. He has attended
schools under various
scholarships in Berlin,
Germany; Paris, France and
New York. He is considered to
be one of Malaysia’s most
treasured living artists.
Guide Questions:
Identify the following:
The overall synopsis
The setting
The tone, mood and atmosphere
The themes
The moral values
Poetic devices used
… in the poem
Vocabulary:
Limbs - an arm or leg of a person
Despair – the complete loss or absence of
hope
Horrendous - extremely unpleasant,
horrifying, or terrible
Carcasses - the dead body of an animal
Questions to answer:
What would you do if your
house was flooded and
everything that you owned
got lost or destroyed?
In the Midst of Harship
by Latiff Mohidin
At dawn they returned home between bloated carcasses
their soaky clothes torn and tiny chips of tree barks
and approached the stove desperately looking for their son’s
albino buffalo that was never found
their limbs marked by scratches
their legs full of wounds They were born amidst hardship
but on their brows and grew up without a sigh or a
there was not a sign of despair complaint
The whole day and night just now they are in the kitchen, making
passed jokes while rolling their cigarette
they had to brave the leaves
horrendous flood
in the water all the time
Guide Questions:
Identify the following:
The overall synopsis
The setting
The tone, mood and atmosphere
The themes
The moral values
Poetic devices used
… in the poem
Synopsis according to stanza
 STANZA 1
They returned home at day break and headed for the stove. This is probably
because they were hungry. However, I have also received some feedbacks saying
that they went straight to the stove to dry themselves as they were drenched with
the flood water. Their clothes were soaking wet and tattered. Their bodies were
covered with scratches and wounds. Yet, they did not display any signs of being
worried.
 STANZA 2
They were out in the flood the whole day and night. They were surrounded by
dead animals and parts of trees that had been destroyed by the flood. We know
that the animals were already dead because of the phrase ‘bloated carcasses’.
They searched desperately for their son’s albino buffalo but were unable to find it.
 STANZA 3
They were born into poverty and difficulty, but they do not complain about their
suffer. Instead, they sit in the kitchen, cracking jokes while smoking cigarettes. This
shows that they face difficulties all the time and this time there is no different. They
have inner strength that makes them strong to face any hardship poses to them.
SETTING
 The setting of the poem is in the house.
THEMES
 Being resilient when facing hardship
 Family love
 Acceptance of way of life
MORAL VALUES
 We should learn to accept problems in life with a
positive outlook.
 We must attempt to face and solve problem.
 Facing hardship is part and parcel of life.
 If we face a problem, do not feel despair.
TONE, MOOD, ATMOSPHERE
Understanding and sympathetic
Acceptance of situation
POINT OF VIEW
Third person pint of view.
LANGUAGE & STYLE
Language is simple and easy to
understand.
The style is simple with no rhyming scheme.
POETIC DEVICES
Imagery – Gives picture of poet’s thoughts e.g
‘soaky clothes torn’ and ‘legs full of wounds’
Alliteration – e.g. ‘but on their brows’
Symbols – e.g. ‘horrendous flood’ and ‘bloating
carcasses’
Diction – e.g. ‘stove’ and ‘brows‘

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