The Slave Poem by Frank Adie

The Slave

Rating: 5.0


I was bought with money
I am the property of my master
He determines the course of my life
He subjects me to mindless drudgery
I am always the last to go to bed
And the first to wake up everyday
I dare not complain or grudge his orders
In fear of the whip of disobedience
Whenever I ask why it is so
I am being told that I am a slave.

I do the cooking in my master's house
Yet I must live on the leftovers
I wash and iron cute and expensive cloths
But have only rags to cover my back
I weed and tend my master's garden
But I dare not taste the fruits therefrom
Whenever I ask why it is so
I am being told that I am a slave.

My master's kids treat me with contempt
They order me at will to serve them food
And command me to bath their pets amidst ongoing chores
If I dare delay due to the chores at hand
They run to their mother to report my disobedience
She never listens to what I have to say
Before twisting life out of my ear
Whenever I ask why it is so
I am being told that I am a slave.

Why am I called a slave, and what is my crime?
I am not a slave, I am only being enslaved
I wasn't born in chains, why am I being chained?
I want to be free, and I must be free
My master will never give me freedom, I must take it
The price of freedom can be very expensive
I am willing to pay, even with my life.

Sunday, August 28, 2016
Topic(s) of this poem: lamentation
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Favour Chinemerem Ugwumba 28 August 2016

Beautiful piece Frank, I love it

2 0 Reply
Dr Dillip K Swain 06 January 2018

A poignant write! It’s hard to express my feelings…“I do the cooking in my master's house/yet I must live on the leftovers /I wash and iron cute and expensive cloths/But have only rags to cover my back”. You have captured a heart provoking theme! I wholeheartedly agree with comments of Chinedu and other esteemed poets!

0 0 Reply
Frank Adie 05 January 2018

Surprisingly I never go back to read comments about my poems. Chinedu, Dr, Tony, Edward and Favour. Accept my unreserved appreciation to your comments. God Bless.

0 0 Reply
Chinedu Dike 11 January 2017

You've just captured the deplorable condition of lives in which 'house-helps' endure on daily basis. I call it modern day slavery. Beautiful piece of poetry elegantly brought forth in good diction with conviction. An insightful poem indeed. Thanks for sharing.

1 0 Reply
Dr Antony Theodore 28 August 2016

Why am I called a slave, and what is my crime? I am not a slave, I am only being enslaved I wasn't born in chains, why am I being chained? ...... when i read the history of the salve trade in america, such imaginations come in my mind and when i see some films which depict such kind of inhuman and evil treatments........ i have such imaginations in my mind...... the whites destroyed the blacks. it is simply history........ and when Obama became president i was all the more happy....... God is alive........ thank you my dear poet for this revealing poem

0 0 Reply
Edward Kofi Louis 28 August 2016

I do the cooking! ! Thanks for sharing this poem with us.

1 0 Reply
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