Letter from a Contract Worker by Antonio Jacinta summary, analysis, themes & literary devices

Letter from a Contract Worker by Antonio Jacinta 

I wanted to write you a letter

my love,

a letter that would tell

of this desire

to see you

of this fear

of losing you

of this more than benevolence that I feel

of this indefinable ill that pursues me

of this yearning to which I live in total surrender …

I wanted to write you a letter

my love,

a letter of intimate secrets,

a letter of memories of you,

of you

of your lips red as henna

of your hair black as mud

of your eyes sweet as honey

of your breasts hard as wild orange

of your lynx gait

and of your caresses

such that I can find no better here …

I wanted to write you a letter

my love,

that would recall the days in our haunts

our nights lost in the long grass

that would recall the shade falling on us from the plum

trees

the moon filtering through the endless palm trees

that would recall the madness

of our passion

and the bitterness

of our separation …

I wanted to write you a letter

my love,

that you would not read without sighing

that you would hide from from papa Bombo

that you would withhold from mama Kieza

that you would reread without the coldness

of forgetting

a letter to which in all Kilombo

no other would stand comparison …

I wanted to write you a letter

my love

a letter that would be brought to you by the passing wind

a letter that the cashews and coffee trees

the hyenas and buffaloes

the alligators and grayling

could understand

so that if the wind should lose it on the way

the beasts and plants

with pity for our sharp suffering

from song to song

lament to lament

gabble to gabble

would bring you pure and hot

the burning words

the sorrowful words of the letter

I wanted to write to you …

I wanted to write you a letter …

But oh my love, I cannot understand

why it is, why, why, why it is, my dear

that you cannot read

and I – Oh the hopelessness! – cannot write!

Summary of Letter from a Contract Worker by Antonio Jacinta

Letter from a contract worker by Antonio Jacinta is a poem that reveals a serious challenge and problem posed by illiteracy. 

A young man who is a contract worker wants to write a letter to his lover, informing her of how much he loves and misses her. 

But the great challenge of illiteracy emerges: he cannot write, and his lover too cannot read, for both are illiterate. 

Analysis of Letter from a Contract Worker by Antonio Jacinta

The poem lines begin with the contract worker saying he strongly desires to write a letter to his lover:

"I wanted to write you a letter

my love,

a letter that would tell

of this desire

to see you

of this fear

of losing you

of this more than benevolence that I feel

of this indefinable ill that pursues me

of this yearning to which I live in total surrender ..."

The contract worker's memories of his lover: 

The contract worker reminisces on his lover's physical beauty, describing and comparing her red lips to red henna, her black hair to black mud, and her eyes to honey. 

The descriptive comparison helps and provides a lucid imagery of what and how the contract worker's lover's physical appearance looks like. 

The contract worker also reflects on his lover's movement, including the way she touches him. 

This touch, which the contract worker describes as a good caress, is an emotional one which the contract worker cannot find in the distant place where he is now. 

All these have profoundly contributed to the memories of the days he was with his lover. 

The contract worker laments about his separation from his lover and how he misses her. 

The contract worker's memories of their happy days:

The contract worker remembers different places where he used to spend lovely time with his lover. 

He thinks of how they spent their night in the long grass under the shade of the plum tree. 

He reflects also on the moon which shines through the palm tree. This natural image also specifically provides a solid picture of the environment which the contract worker spent his time with his lover. 

The contract worker is, however, unhappy because he is now separated from the woman he truly loves. 

The contract worker's pain of separation:

The poem, "Letter from a Contract Worker" by Antonio Jacinta, highlights one of the essential things which is separation. 

The major thing which is impelling the contract worker to write a letter is separation. The contract worker feels emotionally separated from his lover and desires to see his lover again. 

Although he remembers her regularly, but he cannot return to her easily due to the nature of his contract work. This situation therefore makes him to feel lonely and helpless. 

The letter he wants his lover to read:

The kind of letter which the contract worker desires and wants to write to his is extremely special. 

A special letter which the contract worker's lover will secretly read each time she misses him. 

This letter should be hidden from his lover's parent. The content of the letter will be extremely emotional, making his lover to read the letter often without forgetting the message which the letter conveys. 

He hopes that the letter will be so special to the extent that no other letter in Kilombo region where his lover lives will be compared to the romantic letter, which he will send to his lover. 

The ostensible reason for this is because the content of the letter will emanate from his deepest emotional feeling. 

Nature as a messenger:

The contract worker begins to imagine the different ways or method or medium he will use to send his letter to his lover. 

The contract worker therefore wishes and imagines that winds, animals, trees, as well as other nature will help him to deliver his romantic letter to his lover. 

Things he hopes that will help to deliver his letter are cashew trees, coffee trees, hyena, buffalo, alligators, and grayling. 

Also, he thinks that if peradventure the wind lost his letter, the animal and trees that he mentioned will not fail to deliver the letter to his lover. 

This shows how desperate the contract worker is to communicate with his lover. In fact, he imagines that nature is capable of comprehending his thoughts and feelings and thus deliver it to his lover. 

The problem of illiteracy:

The final lines of the poem, "Letter from a Contract Worker" by Antonio Jacinta reveals a major problem which the contract worker and his lover are facing. 

This problem is illiteracy. He, the contract worker, cannot write a letter. Even his lover, who he desires or wants to send a letter to, cannot read also. 

The poem, "Letter from a Contract Worker," therefore shows how negatively illiteracy can hinder people from achieving what they desire to obtain. 

His contract work may be a well-paid job, but it has barred him from communicating with his lover. 

Themes in Letter from a Contract Worker by Antonio Jacinta

The themes that can be found in the poem Letter from a Contract Worker are:

1. love and affection; 

2 separation and loneliness; 

3 illiteracy; 

4. memory and longing. These themes are the major themes that dominate the poems. 

Literary devices in Letter from a Contract Worker by Antonio Jacinta

1. Repetition: The poem makes use of repetition for emphasis. Words such as I want to write you a letter are repeatedly used in the poem. 

2. Imagery: The imagery in the poem can be seen when the contract worker compares his lover's lips to red hyena, her hair to black mud, and her eyes to honey.