e has "cursed the drunken officer of British rule" and now must "choose between this Africa and the English tongue [he loves]."(30) Although he has tried to remain objective about the situation that he finds himself in, he asks himself "how can [he] face such a slaughter and be cool?"(32) The weight of his actions, and the actions of his fellow British, makes him wonder if he should just "betray them both."(31) It is obvious that Walcott has witnessed something he will never forget, and the internal battle he faces makes him wonder if he can "turn from Africa and live."(33) The internal violence is as disturbing to him as the external violence he witnessed is, and he wonders how he will ever be able to live with himself after this incident.Through out both poems, the reader is presented a insight into two unique, yet parallel types of violence. Both writers experience the turmoil of both internal and external types of violence. Although the circumstances surrounding their despair are totally different, many of the feelings felt through out the poems are encountered by both authors. The feelings of despair when violence is encountered is a common theme in both works, and both have a feeling of intimacy with the narrator. Both Sylvia Path and Derek Walcott use the theme of violence in both poems to give the reader insight into the lives and situations of both of the characters, and the unique ways they handle their despair....
