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Listen Mr Oxford don

This study guide will help you analyze “Listen Mr Oxford don” (1985) by John Agard. The poem can be found in the book Worlds of English (pp. 69-70). The guide also includes a summary of the poem, as well as inspiration for interpreting it and putting it into perspective.

John Agard (b. 1949) is a writer and poet who was born in British Guiana. In 1977, Agard emigrated to Great Britain. His works often focus on life as an immigrant and the meeting between British culture and his own Caribbean culture. Agard's poem “Listen Mr Oxford don” focuses on the discrimination that immigrants face because of their language. You can listen to Agard's performance of the poem on YouTube.

Here you can read an extract from the study guide:

The phrases “a man on the run” (p. 69, l. 8) and “a wanted man” (p. 69, l. 23) are repeated in the poem. This use of repetition suggests that the discrimination goes on and on, which makes the speaker feel like a criminal who is wanted for a crime, even though he is innocent.

To further suggest his innocence and peaceful ways, the speaker repeats that “I ent have no gun/I ent have no knife” (p. 69, ll. 12-13). He uses repetition to suggest that he does not need actual weapons, as he can fight against oppression peacefully by using his language:

I dont need no axe
to split/up yu syntax
I don’t need no hammer
to mash/up yu grammar (p. 69, ll. 17-20)

He not only says that he will use language creatively to defend himself - he demonstrates this throughout the poem itself.

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Listen Mr Oxford don

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