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By using poetry as a medium, Dunbar and Komunyakaa are able to indirectly battle racism. Although the poets were born during different times, there is a clear division between blacks and whites, which is broken down by Dunbar 's “Sympathy” and Komunyakaa 's “Facing It.” Dunbar speaks out against racism and uses the caged bird to represent a slave within his poem. At the end of his poem, Dunbar calls for help from his black community and evoke sympathy and remorse from the white people. Komunyakaa uses an approach that addresses the similarities between both sides of the colour spectrum and addresses death, war, the difficulties of expressing difficult emotions and public confrontations between white and black people. The allegorical meaning against racism expressed in these poems would be missed if an academic analysis was not preformed on Dunbar 's “Sympathy” and Komunyakaa 's “Facing It.” A title is always …show more content…
All throughout “Facing It” there are multiple contrasting metaphors that are parallel to each other. The speaker says “I 'm stone. I 'm flesh” (l.5) which is a contradiction. Stone is expressionless, unfeeling, and unmovable, whereas flesh is weak, full of life and expression, and decays over time. The division between these two physical properties is used to underline the differences between skin colour and racism. By comparing the two to each other, Komunyakaa is able to remove the barrier between them. The speaker also says his reflection is “like a bird of prey, the profile of night/ slanted against morning” (l.7-8.) Night can be associated with black, whereas morning can be related to light and white. This creates direct parallelism between African Americans and Caucasians and is used to accentuate the similarities between the races. Each side is a part of night and day. The two together are necessary for all of the natural processes of the
The theme of the past is a key aspect of 'Beloved' and the 'Selected Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar' as the narrators, in both texts, have a nostalgic perception of the many years that have passed, whether the memories are pleasant or grim they are reflected upon with – at the very least – a hint of admiration alongside a deep longing to return to the past. Similarly, in Arthur Miller's 'Death of a Salesman', the tragic hero, Willy Loman, is also constantly drifting back into the past to when his sons were ambitious young men and he was a successful businessman. 'Beloved' was set after the American Civil War in 1873, where many black people were heavily mistreated and suffered long and gruelling years of slavery. The novel was written in 1987, but the author was able to capture the hopes and dreams of most Black Americans whilst simultaneously criticising the treatment they received at the hands of a racist society. Paul Laurence Dunbar also uses the same context in his work, again depicting the longing to be freed from a past life of slavery, which is particularly conveyed in his 'Invitation to Love'. Contrastingly, in 'Death of a Salesman' Willy also yearns for the people of his past, such as Ben Loman, his older brother, who was his role model of success for himself and his sons. In 1945, World War 2 had ended and left American citizens financially very well off and by 1949, agriculture became a difficult job as the Government was more interested in co-operate farms, thus providing a new American Dream; working in high-end businesses to gain a large salary and a respected status. This was Willy Loman's dream, however Arthur Miller used his protagonist to portray how competitive and cut-throat the business world was and how emplo...
Reading these poems is an incredible learning experience because it allows readers to view segregation through the eyes of someone most affected by it. In the U.S. History course I took I didn’t take away the details and specific examples I did from reading and researching Brooks’ work. For example, the history textbook only mentioned one specific person who was affected by segregation, that person was Rosa Parks. The example of Rosa Parks demonstrated just one isolated incident of how black people were punished if they disobeyed the laws of segregation. In contrast, Brooks’ work demonstrates the everyday lives of black people living with segregation, which provides a much different perspective than what people are used to. An example, of this would be in Brooks’ poem “Bronzeville Woman in a Red Hat”. The speaker of this poem hired a black maid and referred to her as “it”(103). By not using the maid’s name or using the pronoun her, the speaker is dehumanizing the maid. This poem expresses to readers that white people thought that black people weren’t like them, that they weren’t even
Paul Lawrence Dunbar, an African-American poet, describes the suffering that blacks were subjected to in his 1913 poem, “We Wear the Mask”. In his poem, Dunbar asserts that blacks are partially responsible for the suffering of African Americans due to their belief that a deceptive “mask” was necessary for their survival.
On the surface, "life" is a late 19th century poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar. The poem illustrates the amount of comfort and somber there is in life. Unfortunately, according to Paul Laurence Dunbar, there is more soberness in life than the joyous moments in our existence. In more detail, Paul Laurence Dunbar demonstrates how without companionship our existence is a series of joys and sorrows in the poem, "Life" through concrete and abstract diction.
Discrimination and prejudice actions in American society is prominent with no hint of extinction. In the book “Sông I Sing” by Bao Phi, he depicts and highlights racism in his poems. The poet outlines stereotypes, prejudices, discrimination along with reference to white privilege. This two time Minnesota slam champion injects his passionate feelings of his views of other people into his poems. He advocates that racism shouldn’t exist in American society. Bao Phi is semi descriptive on the stories and brings his poems alive to visualize the content through words. This poet illustrates the effects of prejudice on people in American society who do not feel freedom based on skin color. All of his poems are deemed excellent not just because Phi
The history of African-American oppression began in the early 1600s as slaves arrived on America’s shores. For hundreds of years, African-Americans struggled against crippling segregation, terrorism, and racial enmity to no avail. As a result of extensive physical and psychological beatings, African-Americans became fearful and very reserved in expressing their emotions. Their suffering, however, fuelled a sense of courage in some, such as African-American poets, who found the strength to address uncertainties that others had against their racial identity. These brave men included George Horton, who wrote “Liberty and Slavery”, and Paul Dunbar, author of “We Wear a Mask”. Through their powerful race-protest poetry, Horton and Dunbar portray that African-Americans feel incessantly trapped, both physically and emotionally, resulting in a deep-rooted yearning for freedom.
The history of African American discrimination is a despicable part of the United States’ past. Inequality among Black Americans prompts these individuals to overcome the hardships. This endurance is valued by African Americans and people all around the world. However, the ability to strive and maintain positivity in a difficult or prejudiced situation proves to be tremendously challenging. When people give up in tough times, they deny their opportunity to succeed and grow stronger. This paper examines the techniques that manifest the struggles of racism and the importance of conquering obstacles in the following poems: Dream Deferred, I, Too and Mother to Son.
Paul Dunbar was born into a tough life from the beginning. His parents were slaves and shortly they separated after his birth but this helped Dunbar later on in his career because Dunbar would draw stories from their plantation life (Paul Poetry Foundation). He had to grow up without two parents and had to tough it out on his own. Dunbar also was financially unable to attend college and eventually moved to Chicago and befriended Frederick Douglass (Paul Poetry Foundation np). These events affected his life by not allowing Dunbar to attend college and sharpen his writing skills and Douglass helped him gain more reputation. Dunbar challenged the literary world by trying to make them read within the words and not just read the words. He fought slavery through his poetry and always referred to people as “we” and never “I”. This is important because Dunbar wanted to stand up for the whole black community and it is important he inspired so many people to read his poems. Dunbar impacted modernism by writing some o...
...eding hearts” and “mouth . . . . myriad subtleties” (4-5).Today, everyone is entitled to having equal opportunities in the US. Back in Dunbar’s time, on the other hand, slavery prohibited blacks from being an ordinary person in society. Although they prayed heavily and persevered, they wore the mask for the time-being, in the hopes of living in a world where the color of one’s skin would not determine his or her character.
In “My Brother Bailey and Kay Francis,” a snippet from autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, author Maya Angelou and her brother Bailey face the challenges of segregation and the abandonment of their parents while growing up in Stamps, Arkansas. Their sense of identity is tarnished through incidents of racial discrimination and the historical conditions of this time period and location further depict the tone of this story. Throughout their lives, racism towards blacks during this time period is evermore present and is the main cause of Angelou and Bailey’s struggle to find security in their identity.
Along with Ode to the Chameleon, Facing It touches upon the subject of racial identity. He writes, “A white vet's image floats / closer to me, then his pale eyes / look through mine. I'm a window” (25-27). This description is very vague, and raises many questions; “Does the white vet see the speaker as someone with whom he has some shared history? In other words, does the white vet recognize the speaker to be a black vet and an equal?" (Kraus). Komunyakaa reveals what it’s like to be an african-american fighting alongside white soldiers. Even though he fought for the same cause as everyone else, he may not be seen as an equal. Empathy is vital in Komunyakaa’s opinion, so he writes poems from a variety of perspectives to connect ‘average’ people to other types of people in history that are not often written about in american literature (Salas).
Maya Angelou’s excerpt from her book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” reveals the challenges facing a young black girl in the south. The prologue of the book tells of a young Angelou in church trying to recite a poem she has forgotten. She describes the dress her grandmother has made her and imagines a day where she wakes up out of her black nightmare. Angelou was raised in a time where segregation and racism were prevalent in society. She uses repetition, diction, and themes to explore the struggle of a black girl while growing up. Angelou produces a feeling of compassion and poignancy within the reader by revealing racial stereotypes, appearance-related insecurities, and negative connotations associated with being a black girl. By doing this she forces the
Laurence Dunbar's "Ship That Pass In The Night" is a cry for opportunity for all men, regardless of race. Dunbar's poem directly parallels a passage from Frederick Douglass' autobiography that gives an account of his life as a slave. Both Douglass and Dunbar look out at the ships that sail by and see hopes for societal changes. Although they both sought change, their aspirations were quite different. Frederick Douglass watched the ships from ashore, wishing for freedom and for slavery to be abolished. Paul Laurence Dunbar on the other hand was already a free man. He was on a ship, still more of an opportunity than Douglass had, yet he was still in search for new opportunities for African Americans. The new opportunities that he seeks are upon a ship somewhere sailing in the dark night and keep passing him by.
...ites a short 33-line poem that simply shows the barriers between races in the time period when racism was still openly practiced through segregation and discrimination. The poem captures the African American tenant’s frustrations towards the landlord as well as the racism shown by the landlord. The poem is a great illustration of the time period, and it shows how relevant discrimination was in everyday life in the nineteen-forties. It is important for the author to use the selected literary devices to help better illustrate his point. Each literary device in the poem helps exemplify the author’s intent: to increase awareness of the racism in the society in the time period.
Throughout I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, racism is a frequent obstacle that non-whites had to overcome. When Maya is young, she doesn’t recognize the racism and discrimination as well as her grandmother does. As Maya gets older, she begins to recognize and take notice to the racism and discrimination towards her and African Americans everywhere. Maya may not recognize the racism and discrimination very well at her young age, but it still affects her outlook on life the same way it would if she had recognized it. The racism and discrimination Maya faced throughout I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, affected her attitude, personality, and overall outlook on life in a positive way.