Nelson Mandela became a legend long before he passed away and to most of the world he is known as the greatest hero of South Africa. According to the Oxford dictionary a hero is:
“1 a person especially a man, who is admired by many people for doing sth brave or good. [...] 3 a person, especially a man, that you admire because of a particular quality or skill that they have.”
There were several political prisoners imprisoned on Robben Island both before, during and after Mandela served on the island. But why was Mandela the only one to become a living legend?
The poem “Yes, Mandela” by Dennis Brutus, is a lyrical poem describing the sender’s strong emotional…show more content… The sentences become longer throughout the poem. In the first and second stanza free verse forms the rhythm, but as the sentences grow longer the writer uses end rhyme to keep the flow in the poem. For example: “…interminable years […]with tears […] and fears…”.
The first sentence of the poem, is like the title “Yes, Mandela…”. Brutus intention of the poem is to show his, and his peoples deepest respect for Mandela and his actions in the fight against apartheid in South Africa. The title obviously clarifies the intention by expressing complete inferior to the hero Nelson Mandela. But why did Mandela become a living legend, and how can he be defined as a hero? Heroes have defined history as long as we know, and so has Mandela. According to the poem he fits The Oxford Dictionary’s definition of the word “hero” perfectly. He was a man admired by many people for doing something good and brave “bearing our burden of hopes and fears…” he didn’t do it alone, but he was the first to take charge on the conflict that nobody dared to touch. The Oxford Dictionary’s other definition of a hero indicates that the definition of a hero can be very personal “a person, epspecially a man, that you admire because of a particular quality or skill that they have”. An adjoining question could be how much bad a person is allowed to do, to yet remain a hero. In that case Mandela’s status as a hero could be discussed in some
