Once Upon a Time — Gabriel Okara
"They used to shake hands with their hearts. Now they shake hands without hearts."
The Poet
Gabriel Okara (1921–2019) was a Nigerian poet and novelist. This poem reflects his concern about the LOSS of GENUINE human connection in a modern, materialistic world.
The Contrast — THEN vs. NOW
| THEN (Childhood/Past) | NOW (Adulthood/Present) |
|---|---|
| People laughed with their HEARTS | People laugh with their TEETH only |
| Shook hands with WARMTH | Shake hands without feeling |
| Faces showed GENUINE emotion | Faces are MASKS ('wearing many faces') |
| Eyes CONNECTED | Eyes are 'ice-block-cold' |
The Poet's Confession
'I have learned to wear many faces — / homeface, officeface, streetface, hostface, cocktailface...' The poet admits: he TOO has become fake. He TOO has learned to PRETEND. And he HATES it.
The Plea to His Son
'Show me, son, how to laugh. Show me how I used to laugh and smile / Once upon a time when I was like you.' The poet asks his CHILD to TEACH him to be GENUINE again. 'Children are AUTHENTIC. They have not yet learned to wear masks. The poet wants to UNLEARN what adulthood taught him.'
Themes
- Loss of Innocence and Authenticity: Growing up means learning to PRETEND.
- The Superficiality of Modern Life: People perform emotions rather than FEEL them.
- The Child as Teacher: The hope that CHILDREN can show adults how to be REAL again.
Poetic Devices
- Simile: 'laugh with their teeth like a snake's bare fangs'
- Metaphor: 'ice-block-cold eyes'
- Repetition: 'faces' — emphasises the multiplicity of masks
Full Summary
'Once Upon a Time' is a POEM about the LOSS OF AUTHENTICITY in human relationships. The poet, Gabriel Okara, expresses a NOSTALGIC longing for the PAST — when people were GENUINE, warm, and sincere. In the modern world, he observes, people have become FAKE — wearing MASKS, laughing without feeling, and shaking hands without MEANING.
Stanza 1 — The Contrast: 'Once upon a time, son, they used to laugh with their HEARTS / and laugh with their eyes. / But now they only laugh with their TEETH / while their ice-block-cold eyes search behind my shadow.'
The poet tells his son that in the PAST, people laughed GENUINELY — with their whole being. Now, laughter is SUPERFICIAL — only the TEETH show, but the EYES remain 'ice-block-cold.' The eyes are INSINCERE — they 'search behind my shadow' (looking for something to gain, not connecting with the person).
Stanza 2 — The Handshake: 'There was a time indeed they used to shake hands with their HEARTS / but that's GONE, son. / Now they shake hands without HEARTS / while their LEFT hands search my empty pockets.'
In the past, handshakes were EXPRESSIONS OF GENUINE WARMTH. Now, they are EMPTY GESTURES. The 'left hands search my empty pockets' is a POWERFUL IMAGE — suggesting GREED and SELF-INTEREST. Even while greeting you, people are checking what they can GET from you.
Stanza 3 — The Masks: 'So I have learned to wear MANY FACES / like dresses — / HOMEFACE, OFFICEFACE, STREETFACE, HOSTFACE, COCKTAILFACE / with all their conforming smiles / like a fixed portrait smile.'
The poet CONFESSES that he TOO has learned to pretend. He wears DIFFERENT 'FACES' for different situations — home, office, street, party. All of them are FAKE — manufactured smiles that do not come from the heart. The word 'PORTRAIT' suggests something STIFF and ARTIFICIAL — like a painted smile that never changes.
Stanza 4 — The Request: 'And I have learned, too, to laugh with only my TEETH / and shake hands without my HEART. / I have also learned to say 'Goodbye' / when I mean 'Good-riddance'; / to say 'Glad to meet you' / without being GLAD; and to say 'Let's do this again' / when I DON'T WANT TO.'
The poet lists the SOCIAL HYPOCRISIES he has mastered: saying goodbye when he means good riddance, saying 'glad to meet you' when he is not glad, saying 'let's do this again' when he never wants to see the person again. 'This is MODERN LIFE — a constant performance of emotions we do not FEEL.'
Stanza 5 — The Plea to His Son: 'Show me, son, how to LAUGH. / Show me how I used to laugh and smile / ONCE UPON A TIME when I was like you.'
The poet turns to his CHILD — asking him to TEACH him how to LAUGH genuinely again. 'Children have not yet learned to pretend. Their laughter is REAL. Their joy is AUTHENTIC. The poet wants to UNLEARN everything adulthood has taught him — and rediscover the INNOCENCE of childhood.'
Stanza-by-Stanza Analysis
| Stanza | Summary | Key Imagery | Theme |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Contrast between past and present laughter | 'laugh with their hearts' vs 'ice-block-cold eyes' | Loss of genuine emotion |
| 2 | Contrast between past and present handshakes | 'shake hands with their hearts' vs 'left hands search my empty pockets' | Greed and insincerity |
| 3 | The poet admits he wears masks | 'homeface, officeface, streetface' | Loss of authentic identity |
| 4 | The social hypocrisies he has learned | 'Goodbye' when I mean 'Good-riddance' | Deception in social interaction |
| 5 | Plea to his son to teach him authenticity | 'Show me, son, how to laugh' | The child as teacher. Hope for redemption |
Themes — Detailed
1. Loss of Innocence and Authenticity
'The central theme of the poem is the LOSS OF AUTHENTICITY that comes with growing up. Children are GENUINE — they express what they feel. Adults are FAKE — they say what is EXPECTED, not what they mean. Growing up means LEARNING to PRETEND. The poet MOURNS this loss.'
2. The Superficiality of Modern Life
Modern life, according to the poet, has turned human relationships into TRANSACTIONS. People do not connect with each other — they USE each other. The 'left hands search my empty pockets' is a devastating image of how even handshakes (symbols of friendship) have become OPPORTUNITIES for exploitation.
3. The Performance of Emotions
'The poet lists the MANY FACES he has learned to wear — implying that modern life is a constant PERFORMANCE. We act DIFFERENTLY in different settings — but NONE of these performances is the TRUE SELF. The 'portrait smile' is FIXED and ARTIFICIAL.'
4. The Child as Teacher
In a beautiful REVERSAL of the usual parent-child relationship, the poet asks his SON to teach HIM. This suggests that: (a) Children have WISDOM that adults have lost. (b) Authenticity is not something we LEARN — it is something we UNLEARN. (c) There is HOPE — if we can reconnect with our inner child.
Poetic Devices — Detailed
| Device | Example from Poem | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Simile | 'laugh with their teeth like a snake's bare fangs' | Compares modern laughter to a SNAKE — suggesting DANGER and DECEPTION behind the smile. |
| Metaphor | 'ice-block-cold eyes' | Eyes are compared to blocks of ICE — suggesting COLDNESS, LACK OF WARMTH, and EMOTIONAL DISTANCE. |
| Repetition | 'homeface, officeface, streetface, hostface, cocktailface' | The repeated 'face' EMPHASISES how many masks the poet wears. The more faces, the MORE ARTIFICIAL life becomes. |
| Repetition | 'Show me, son, how to laugh. Show me how I used to laugh' | The REPETITION of 'show me' creates a PLEADING TONE — the poet is DESPERATE for his son's help. |
| Contrast | 'laugh with their hearts' vs 'laugh with their teeth' | The central structural device of the poem. PAST = genuine. NOW = fake. The contrast DRIVES the poem's meaning. |
| Imagery | 'left hands search my empty pockets' | VISUAL IMAGE of greed and opportunism — even a greeting is a chance to TAK E from you. |
| Personification | 'conforming smiles like a fixed portrait smile' | The smile becomes a THING — separate from the person. It 'conforms' — it does not express genuine feeling. |
Important Quotes
| Quote | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 'They used to laugh with their hearts... Now they only laugh with their teeth.' | Past laughter was GENUINE. Present laughter is SUPERFICIAL — only the mouth moves, not the soul. |
| 'Their left hands search my empty pockets.' | People are OPPORTUNISTIC — even while greeting you, they are checking what they can GET. |
| 'I have learned to wear many faces, like dresses.' | Authenticity is LOST in modern life. We are ACTORS playing different roles. |
| 'Show me, son, how to laugh.' | Children are AUTHENTIC. Adults must LEARN from them. There is HOPE for redemption. |
Vocabulary
| Word | Meaning | Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| Conforming | Following accepted standards | 'His conforming smile was fake.' |
| Fangs | Sharp teeth of a snake or animal | 'Their smile was like a snake's fangs.' |
| Ridicule | To mock | 'Good-riddance' implies a desire to be rid of someone. |
| Authentic | Genuine, real | 'The poet longs for authentic relationships.' |
| Hypocrisy | Pretending to have virtues one does not have | 'The poem criticises social hypocrisy.' |
| Nostalgia | Longing for the past | 'The poet feels nostalgia for childhood innocence.' |
| Superficial | Existing only on the surface | 'Modern laughter is superficial.' |
| Portray | To depict or describe | 'The poet portrays modern life as fake.' |
Exam-Focused Questions (Extended)
Q1. What contrast does the poet draw between the past and the present? The poet contrasts GENUINE human connection in the past with SUPERFICIAL interactions today. 'Then': people laughed with their HEARTS and EYES, shook hands with WARMTH. 'Now': they laugh only with their TEETH (like a snake's fangs), shake hands without HEARTS, and their eyes are 'ice-block-cold.' The past was AUTHENTIC; the present is FAKE.
Q2. What does the poet mean by 'wearing many faces'? The poet means that in modern life, we PRETEND to be different people in different situations. We have a 'homeface' (for family), an 'officeface' (for work), a 'cocktailface' (for parties). None of these is our TRUE SELF. We have LOST our authentic identity behind a collection of MASKS.
Q3. Why does the poet ask his son to teach him to laugh? Because CHILDREN are still AUTHENTIC — they have not yet learned to pretend. The poet has forgotten how to laugh GENUINELY — his laughter is now a PERFORMANCE. He wants his son to REMIND him what real laughter FEELS like. The poet believes that the child can be a TEACHER to the adult.
Q4. Explain the significance of the title 'Once Upon a Time.' The title is IRONIC. 'Once upon a time' is how FAIRY TALES begin — suggesting something MAGICAL or FICTIONAL. By using this phrase, the poet suggests that GENUINE HUMAN CONNECTION is now almost a FANTASY — something that existed only in the distant past. It also creates a NOSTALGIC tone — a longing for a time that may never return.
Self-Test Questions
- What is the MAIN THEME of the poem 'Once Upon a Time'?
- Contrast the 'then' and 'now' described in the first two stanzas.
- What does 'wearing many faces' mean? Why does the poet do it?
- Why does the poet ask his SON to teach him to laugh?
- What is the significance of the IMAGE 'their left hands search my empty pockets'?
- Explain the SIMILE: 'laugh with their teeth like a snake's bare fangs.'
- What is the tone of the poem?
- What REQUEST does the poet make at the end of the poem?
- How does the poet use CONTRAST as a structural device in the poem?
- What HOPE does the poem offer?
Answers to Selected Questions: Q2: THEN: people laughed with their hearts and eyes; shook hands with warmth. NOW: people laugh only with their teeth (like snakes); shake hands without hearts; eyes are 'ice-block-cold.' Q10: The poem offers hope through the CHILD. The poet asks his son to teach him to laugh again — suggesting that AUTHENTICITY can be RECOVERED, that the innocence of childhood can be a MODEL for adult behaviour. The final stanza is a PLEA for REDEMPTION.
