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Themes in caged bird by maya angelou
Narrative essay on the theme of poverty
Narrative essay on the theme of poverty
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Freedom is something every human being/animals should have. In the poems “Caged Bird” published by Maya Angelon and “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar it shows how one bird is caged and how one is free. The caged bird sees everything it could have if it was free but is forced not to have it. Birds should not have to be caged, everyone should have freedom, including birds! In Laurence Dunbar’s poem, “Sympathy” he points out the lifestyle of a caged bird and the bird’s desire for freedom. For example, Dunbar neglects in the second stanza, “I know why the caged bird beats his wing… Till it’s blood is red on the cruel bars.” The caged bird has to stay in his cage when he could be perched on a swinging tree branch. The sights the caged bird sees
hurts him even more because he can be the one outside flying instead of in a cage. In addition, the last stanza of “Sympathy” Dunbar writes “I know why the caged bird sings, ah me, When his wings bruised and his bosom sore--- when he beats his bars and he would be free.” Dunbar shows how when the caged bird beats his wings it cries of pain. The caged bird feels imprisoned and constrained while it has not given up despite a lifetime of captivity. The caged bird is hurt because he is able to see everything he can have if he was free but cannot have it so hurts himself more.
In “A Caged Bird”, it is made clear that this bird has never experienced the freedom of flying with the other species or perching atop the highest building. All it has ever known is the cage in which is has been kept and fed plentifully, yet not punctually, and nurtured with the love of an owner and proper care.
In “The Finish of Patsy Barnes” by Paul Laurence Dunbar, readers can agree on the message of the book being that love for family can do amazing things. In the book, a young black boy named Patsy Barnes and his mother Eliza are living in Tennessee during the time shortly after slavery has nearly ended. After Patsy’s father is killed by a horse they moved North to an area called little Africa. Shortly after, Eliza falls sick with pneumonia, and the city physician can not help her and Patsy needs to find a way to afford a new doctor.
1- I used the book When the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou. It has 36 chapters. The movie I used was the Troy.
Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Maya shields herself against the confusion of St. Louis by reading fairy-tales and telling herself that she does not intend on staying there anyway. Vivian works in a gambling parlor at night. Maya pities Mr. Freeman because he spends his days at home waiting for Vivian to return. Maya begins sleeping at night with Vivian and Mr. Freeman because she suffers from nightmares. One morning after Vivian has left the bed and the house, Mr. Freeman sexually molests Maya. He does not rape her but rather masturbates on the bed while holding her close to him. Afterward, he threatens to kill Bailey if Maya ever tells anyone, but Maya, who does not understand what has happened and who actually enjoyed being held by someone, cannot understand what caused such a threat. For weeks, Mr. Freeman ignores her, and then molests her again. Again, he ignores her for weeks. Maya feels rejected and hurt, but she loses herself in other things, such as books. She wishes she were a boy because the heroes in all her favorite books and stories are male. Bailey welcomes the move to St. Louis and he makes friends, with whom he plays baseball. Maya, however, does not make any friends during this time. She and Bailey begin to grow apart, so she spends her Saturdays in the library reading fantastic adventures. ...
Have you ever heard the expression money isn’t everything? Well it’s true and in Langston Hughes short story, “Why, You reckon,” Hughes reveals his theme of how people aren’t always as happy as they seem when they have lots of money.
Little Brown Baby by Paul Laurence Dunbar Paul Laurence Dunbar is one of the most influential African American poets to gain a nationwide reputation. Dunbar the son of two former slaves; was born in 1872 in Dayton, Ohio. His work is truly one of a kind, known for its rich, colorful language, encompassed by the use of dialect, a conversational tune, and a brilliant rhetorical structure. The style of Dunbar’s poetry includes two distinct voices; the standard English of the classical poet and the evocative dialect of the turn of the century black community in America. His works include
In “To A Waterfowl” Bryant uses a bird as a symbol of hope for humanity. The bird helps humanity know that even though he has dark thoughts he will be okay in th...
Paul Laurence Dunbar depicts this idea in his well-known poem “Sympathy” (one of my favorite poems!), describing a caged bird that longs for freedom. Dunbar establishes his knowledge of the bird ’s feelings, his desire for freedom (his motive of rebellion). Dunbar draws empathy from the audience as he describes the bird’s integrity in the descriptive lines: “I know why the caged bird beats his wing Till its blood is red on the cruel bars.” The caged bird goes to a dangerous extent to be heard, as he bleeds on his prison bars, for he is willing to do anything for his freedom— this shows his integrity and confidence in his values.
The poem provides insight into the direct relationship of using choice to transcend (“free bird”) and excel to unlimited possibilities (“the sky”) versus using a choice which mentally stagnates (cages the mind) and results in mental strain (“his tune is heard on the distant hill…sings of freedom”). The outstanding aspect of “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” is the exceptional use of personification. The author’s personification of a bird (wild/free vs captivity) to compare and contrast to the cognitive operation of the human mind is provocative, compelling me to reflect, daily, on my life
A situation can be interpreted into several different meanings when observed through the world of poetry. A poet can make a person think of several different meanings to a poem when he or she is reading it. Langston Hughes wrote a poem titled "I, Too." In this poem he reveals the Negro heritage and the pride that he has in his heritage and in who he is. Also, Hughes uses very simple terms that allow juvenile interpretations and reading.
Such as the poem The Caged Bird sings.
In the poem “Sympathy” the author explains why the caged bird sings, this is said many times through the poem. The caged bird attempts to get out of his cage, he doesn’t stop trying to escape. “I know why the caged bird beats his wing Till it’s blood is red on the cruel bars; For he must fly back to his perch and cling When he fain would
Davidson, Arnold E. "Cages And Escapes In Margaret Laurence's A Bird In The House." University Of Windsor Review 16.1 (1981): 92-101. Print.
bird as the metaphor of the poem to get the message of the poem across
I chose these three poems because the subject matter appealed to me and I believe that the poems convey their meaning very effectively. Upon researching the poems, I discovered that Caged Bird was in fact inspired by Sympathy, which accounts for the similarities in language and imagery, as outlined below. All three poems deal with the subject of freedom using the imagery of birds; On Liberty and Slavery is narrated as a human plea for freedom, and makes reference to birds in that context, whereas Caged Bird and Sympathy both use the imagery of caged birds to explore the theme of loss of freedom. The symbolism of birds is used to depict freedom, as birds are essentially without constraints; in comparison to the limitations of humans, they have limitless possibilities. When a bird is caged, however, it loses that potential and is restricted not by its own limitations, but the limits set by another.