- Poet
- Gabriel Okara (Nigeria)
- Syllabus theme
- Society
- Form
- Free verse in seven stanzas; a dramatic monologue
- Speaker
- A father speaking to his young son
- Key idea
- The loss of sincerity in modern society, and a longing for innocence
About the poet
Gabriel Imomotimi Gbaingbain Okara was born on 21 April 1921 in Bumodi, Nigeria. He was a poet and novelist, and he is often described as highly original and uninfluenced by other poets. His work captures the moods, sights and sounds of Africa with great sensitivity and energy.
A recurring concern in Okara's writing, as the original LitHelp notes point out, is what happens when the ancient culture of Africa meets modern Western culture. "Once upon a Time" explores one result of that meeting: the loss of warmth and sincerity in human relationships.
Background
Okara lived through great changes in Nigerian society: the growth of cities, Western education and business, and new ways of living. Traditional village life valued community, hospitality and openness. Modern city life, in the poem's view, brings competition, self-interest and politeness that is only skin-deep.
The poem presents these changes through one person's experience: a father who has learned to "wear many faces" in order to fit in, and who now regrets it.
"Once upon a Time" is prescribed under the theme Society, with "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", "Richard Cory" and "Big Match 1983". Like "Richard Cory", it contrasts how people appear with what they are really like.
Setting
No particular place is named, but the poem moves through modern social settings: greetings and handshakes, visits to friends' homes, the office, the street, cocktail parties and formal hosting. The father contrasts this present-day world with an earlier time, "once upon a time", when people were genuine.
Synopsis
A father tells his son that people once laughed and shook hands with sincerity, but now they only pretend, while secretly looking out for their own advantage. Their welcome is false: "Come again" does not really mean come again. The father admits that he too has learned to wear different "faces" for different occasions and to say polite things he does not mean. He is unhappy with the person he has become; even his laugh in the mirror looks like "a snake's bare fangs". He wants to return to the innocence he had as a child, and he asks his son to teach him how to laugh again.
Stanza-by-stanza analysis
Stanza 1Once 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.
"Once upon a time" is the opening of a fairy tale. It suggests that the honest past now seems almost imaginary. The direct address "son" makes the poem a dramatic monologue. The contrast between laughing "with their hearts / and … eyes" and laughing "with their teeth" sets out the whole poem: genuine feeling against empty display. "Ice-block-cold eyes" is a vivid compound metaphor for coldness and lack of feeling. People "search behind my shadow", looking for what they can gain, or for hidden faults.
Stanza 2There 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.
The same pattern repeats: the past ("There was a time indeed") against the present ("Now"). A handshake should be a sign of friendship, but now it is a cover for greed: the "left hands search / my empty pockets". This shocking image shows that people value others only for money. "Empty pockets" adds irony: the speaker has nothing to steal. The short line "but that's gone, son" sounds sad and final.
Stanza 3'Feel at home!' 'Come again':
they say, and when I come
again and feel
at home, once, twice,
there will be no thrice-
for then I find doors shut on me.
The polite expressions in quotation marks are clichés: they sound warm but are not meant. The speaker accepts the invitation "once, twice", but the third time ("thrice") he finds "doors shut on me". The enjambment ("when I come / again and feel / at home") slows the reading, as if he is cautiously testing their words. The shut doors are a strong image of rejection and false hospitality.
Stanza 4So I have learned many things, son.
I have learned to wear many faces
like dresses – homeface,
officeface, streetface, hostface,
cocktailface, with all their conforming smiles
like a fixed portrait smile.
Now the father turns to himself: he too has become false. The simile "faces / like dresses" suggests that personalities are changed like clothes for each occasion. Okara invents compound words ("homeface", "officeface", "streetface", "hostface", "cocktailface"), and listing them shows how many masks a person must wear. "Conforming smiles" and the simile "like a fixed portrait smile" suggest smiles that are frozen and lifeless, worn simply to fit in.
Stanza 5And 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 'It's been
nice talking to you', after being bored.
The father admits he does exactly what he criticised in stanzas 1 and 2: "laugh with only my teeth / and shake hands without my heart". The repetition of "I have learned" stresses that this falseness is learned behaviour, not natural. The contrasting pairs ("Goodbye" / "Good-riddance"; "Glad to meet you" / "without being glad") expose the gap between what people say and what they mean. There is gentle humour, but also self-criticism.
Stanza 6But believe me, son.
I want to be what I used to be
when I was like you. I want
to unlearn all these muting things.
Most of all, I want to relearn
how to laugh, for my laugh in the mirror
shows only my teeth like a snake's bare fangs!
"But" marks the turning point. The father sincerely wants to change. The repetition of "I want" shows his longing. "Unlearn" and "relearn" are an effective pair: he must undo what society taught him. "Muting things" suggests that his false manners have silenced his true feelings. The simile "like a snake's bare fangs" is the poem's most disturbing image. In the mirror he sees himself as dangerous and deceitful, and the exclamation mark shows his horror.
Stanza 7So 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 poem ends with a humble request: the father asks his child to teach him. This role reversal (the child as teacher) shows that innocence is more valuable than adult experience. The repetition of "show me" sounds like a plea. "Once upon a time" returns from the first line, creating a circular structure: the honest past survives in the child.
Themes
- Loss of innocenceThe father longs for the honesty he had "when I was like you". Growing up has taught him to pretend.
- Hypocrisy and insinceritySmiles, handshakes, greetings and invitations have become empty forms.
- Appearance vs reality"Many faces like dresses": people show one thing and feel another.
- Self-interest and greedLeft hands "search my empty pockets"; people value others for what they can get.
- Tradition vs modernityThe warm past ("once upon a time") against cold modern society, reflecting Okara's concern with African culture meeting Western ways.
- Hope through the youngThe son represents innocence that can still be learned from.
Literary techniques
| Technique | Example | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Dramatic monologue / direct address | "son" | Intimate, sincere; we overhear a father's confession |
| Contrast (past vs present) | "laugh with their hearts" / "laugh with their teeth" | Highlights what has been lost |
| Metaphor | "ice-block-cold eyes" | Coldness and lack of feeling |
| Simile | "faces like dresses"; "like a snake's bare fangs" | Masks changed like clothes; falseness as danger |
| Coined compound words | "homeface, officeface, streetface" | Shows the many masks people wear |
| Imagery | "left hands search / my empty pockets"; "doors shut on me" | Greed and rejection made vivid |
| Repetition | "I have learned"; "I want"; "show me" | Emphasis; regret and longing |
| Irony | "Goodbye" meaning "Good-riddance" | Exposes the gap between words and meaning |
| Enjambment | "when I come / again and feel / at home" | Slows the pace; hesitation |
| Circular structure | "Once upon a time" at start and end | The innocent past survives in the child |
| Role reversal | The son teaches the father | Innocence is wiser than experience |
Tone
The tone is nostalgic and regretful, often bitter about society, and honestly self-critical. It ends humble and hopeful. The poem's simple, conversational language makes the father's confession feel sincere, the very quality he says he has lost.
Context questions (Part I, Section A)
Each extract carries 5 marks: (a) text and author, 1; (b) speaker, person spoken to, or situation, 2; (c) inference or response, 2.
"but now they only laugh with their teeth,
while their ice-block-cold eyes
search behind my shadow."
- From which poem is this extract taken? Who wrote it? 1
- Who is the speaker? To whom is he speaking? 2
- Explain "ice-block-cold eyes". 2
Show model answer
(a) "Once upon a Time" by Gabriel Okara.
(b) The speaker is a father, speaking to his young son.
(c) It is a metaphor for people whose eyes show no warmth or feeling. Although their mouths smile, their eyes are cold and calculating, revealing their insincerity.
"Now they shake hands without hearts
while their left hands search
my empty pockets."
- Name the poem and the poet. 1
- What contrast does the speaker make in this stanza? 2
- What attitude of people is revealed by "their left hands search / my empty pockets"? 2
Show model answer
(a) "Once upon a Time" by Gabriel Okara.
(b) He contrasts the past, when people "used to shake hands with their hearts", with the present, when they shake hands "without hearts".
(c) Greed and self-interest. People pretend to be friendly but are really interested only in what they can get from others. "Empty pockets" adds irony, because the speaker has nothing to give.
"I have learned to wear many faces
like dresses – homeface,
officeface, streetface, hostface,
cocktailface"
- From which poem is this extract taken? Who wrote it? 1
- What does the speaker mean by "wear many faces"? 2
- Comment on the poet's use of words such as "homeface" and "officeface". 2
Show model answer
(a) "Once upon a Time" by Gabriel Okara.
(b) He means that he has learned to change his behaviour and expressions to suit each situation, hiding his real feelings behind false appearances, as easily as changing clothes.
(c) The poet invents compound words. Listing them shows how many different masks a person must wear in modern society, and makes the falseness seem routine and mechanical.
"Most of all, I want to relearn
how to laugh, for my laugh in the mirror
shows only my teeth like a snake's bare fangs!"
- Name the poem and the poet. 1
- Why does the speaker want to "relearn" how to laugh? 2
- Identify the figure of speech in the last line and explain its effect. 2
Show model answer
(a) "Once upon a Time" by Gabriel Okara.
(b) Because he has forgotten how to laugh sincerely. Society has taught him to laugh only with his teeth, and he wants to return to the honest laughter of his childhood.
(c) A simile: his laugh is compared to "a snake's bare fangs". It shows that his false smile now looks dangerous and deceitful to himself, expressing his horror and self-disgust.
Essay questions (Part II, Poetry)
Content 7 · Organisation 4 · Language 4.
"In 'Once upon a Time', Gabriel Okara criticises the artificiality of modern society." Discuss. 15
Show model answer
Gabriel Okara's "Once upon a Time" is spoken by a father to his young son. Comparing the past with the present, the father exposes the artificiality of modern social life, and admits that he himself has become part of it.
The poem first criticises the falseness of everyday gestures. Once, people "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 metaphor of "ice-block-cold eyes" shows the coldness behind their smiles. Even handshakes have become a cover for greed: people "shake hands without hearts / while their left hands search / my empty pockets." The image reveals that relationships are now driven by self-interest.
Okara also attacks false hospitality. Phrases like "Feel at home!" and "Come again" sound warm, but when the speaker accepts the invitation "once, twice", he finds "doors shut on me". These polite clichés are empty words.
The criticism becomes more powerful because the father admits he is guilty too. He has "learned to wear many faces / like dresses": "homeface, officeface, streetface, hostface, / cocktailface". The coined compound words show how many masks modern life demands, and the simile "like a fixed portrait smile" suggests lifeless, conforming expressions. He has learned to say "Goodbye" when he means "Good-riddance", and "Glad to meet you" without being glad. These ironic contrasts expose the gap between words and feelings.
The poem does not end in despair. The father is disgusted by his own reflection: his laugh "shows only my teeth like a snake's bare fangs!" He wants to "unlearn all these muting things" and asks his son, "show me how / I used to laugh and smile." The child, still innocent, represents the sincerity that society has destroyed.
In conclusion, through contrast, vivid imagery, invented words and irony, Okara presents a sharp criticism of artificial modern society, made more convincing by the speaker's honest self-examination and his hope that innocence can be relearned.
Discuss the significance of the title "Once upon a Time". 15
Show answer plan
- Introduction: a fairy-tale phrase used to open a serious poem.
- The past as a fairy tale: sincerity now seems so distant it is almost a story.
- Contrast: "Once upon a time" vs "but now" throughout.
- Childhood: the phrase links to the son and to stories told to children.
- Circular structure: the title phrase returns in the last line, "once upon a time when I was like you".
- Irony and nostalgia: the title expresses longing, and suggests that society has lost something real.
- Conclusion: the title captures the poem's theme of lost innocence and the hope of regaining it.
- Forgetting that the father criticises himself too, not only other people.
- Saying the poem is addressed to the reader. The listener is the speaker's son.
- Explaining "homeface" and the other words without naming the technique: invented compound words.
- Missing the hopeful ending and the role reversal.
Quick revision
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Once Upon a Time
by Gabriel Okara · O/L Literature Interactive Quiz