America Evolving Through Time The poems “I Hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman, “America” by Claude McKay, and “We Are Running” by Lucille Clifton all sketch a robust image of the importance of time. Although each poem is written within a different period of American history, the reader easily fuses the poems together by focusing on the fascination of time displayed throughout each of the poems. In “I Hear America Singing” the author leads the reader through a typical workday of early American laborers and creates a harmonious yet rustic reflection of a hard day’s work. “America” written in 1922 conveys a message of longing for future days when time will grant alleviation from the author’s suffering. However, in “We Are Running” the author sounds chaotic and stressed by the notion of time. …show more content…
These poems portray how the conception of time differs throughout America’s process of evolving as a nation. As America evolves over the years the process of how time is perceived changes. The poem “I Hear America Singing” written in 1860 begins with a joyful tone related to time. The author uses the concept of a song to create a lighthearted significance to the idea of time, “The woodcutter’s song, the ploughboy’s on his way in | the morning, or at noon intermission or at sundown” (Whitman 23). The author conveys the message of workday satisfaction for a quintessential American laborer, “The mason singing his as he makes ready for work, or | leaves off work” (Whitman 23). The reader focuses on varying professions suitable to that particular time in American history, while being guided with a chanting rhythm from sunrise to sunset. The author begins closing the poem by summing up the essence of a day transitioning into the night, “The day what belongs to the day-at night the party of | young fellows, robust, friendly” (Whitman 23). The significance of the last line using an oxymoron, “Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs” (Whitman 23), leaves the reader with an optimistic view of the future in a bold yet harmonious way. Despite the confident tone of “I Hear America Singing”, there is a transition of emotions in the poem “America” written by Claude McKay in 1922. The author expresses time with an excruciating tone, “Stealing my breath of life, I will confess” (McKay 23). Through the use of alliteration the reader thrusts into an unattractive image of America, “And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth” (McKay 23). The speaker expresses an internal battle between love and hatred for his country displayed through the use of verbal irony in the line, “I love this cultured hell that tests my youth” (McKay 23). The persona created by the author of a man being tortured by time infuses the reader throughout the poems entirety, “Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand, | Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand” (McKay 23). The reader is reminded that the speaker feels unable to change the course of despair when he glimpses into the future, “Darkly I gaze into the days ahead” (McKay 23). The poem embodies the essence of Time’s engulfing misery while the speaker hungers for a better future. However, as we progress throughout time the reader views a new glimpse inside American history.
“America” by Lucille Clifton written in 1990 best represents present-day America. The author of the poem generates a tone of chaos and desperation. The speaker of the poem feels pressure to conform to a rapidly paced lifestyle where time is quickly flowing, “We are running | running and | time is clocking us” (Clifton 23). The author uses denotation as well as simile to express the meaning of time literally and figuratively, “time is clocking us | from the edge like an only daughter” (Clifton 23). The author turns to spirituality in an effort to help ease the anxiety of time, “oh pray that what we want | is worth this running” (Clifton 23). The poem leads the reader to assume that America has become a quick paced society exhausted by their own desires. Lastly, the reader ascertains a sense of uncertainty from the speaker, “pray that what we’ve running toward | is what we want” (Clifton 23). The author focuses on the speaker’s conception of time throughout the speaker’s lifespan and the daunting notion that the desired goal will not account for the price paid to achieve the
goal. In conclusion, although the period of American history varied greatly between the times when each poem was written, the poems share a fundamental motif of time perception. Each author clearly depicts a different era in American history and beholds diversity between each poem when referring to time conception. Beginning with a joyous feeling when work was vigorous but rewarding, a period where the ends justified the means in “I Hear America Singing.” The reader shifts to a time in American history that feels somber and dangerous in the poem “America”, where the reader is left wondering if the speaker will ever see an honorable America. Lastly, the reader evolves to a time in America that is stressful and chaotic in the poem “We Are Running”. This frenzied state represents that time is a precious commodity needed to obtain the final target over the American’s lifetime. These poems serve as artistry, each in their own way, giving historical account for the perception of time over America’s ever evolving nation.
“This is Our World” by Dorothy Allison is an essay that brings her own personal views to art and the impact that it has had on her life. She brings descriptive language to describe how the art can be compared to writing. The author persuades her audience that writing is more than just writing and it can be an eloquent and beautiful piece of art.
The social, cultural and political history of America as it affects the life course of American citizens became very real to us as the Delany sisters, Sadie and Bessie, recounted their life course spanning a century of living in their book "Having Our Say." The Delany sisters’ lives covered the period of their childhood in Raleigh, North Carolina, after the "Surrender" to their adult lives in Harlem, New York City during the roaring twenties, to a quiet retirement in suburban, New York City, as self-styled "maiden ladies." At the ages of 102 and 104, these ladies have lived long enough to look back over a century of their existence and appreciate the value of a good family life and companionship, also to have the last laugh that in spite of all their struggles with racism, sexism, political and economic changes they triumphed (Having Our Say).
In her work, “This is Our World,” Dorothy Allison shares her perspective of how she views the world as we know it. She has a very vivid past with searing memories of her childhood. She lives her life – her reality – because of the past, despite how much she wishes it never happened. She finds little restitution in her writings, but she continues with them to “provoke more questions” (Allison 158) and makes the readers “think about what [they] rarely want to think about at all” (158).
American Bards: Walt Whitman and Other Unlikely Candidates for National Poet. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 2010. Print.
The famous Abraham Lincoln once asserted his opinion that,’America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. It seems that Tony Hoagland, an American poet and writer, agrees with his point of view, as evident in his poem, ‘America’ and expresses Lincoln’s opinion again through poetry. Tony Hoagland expresses his desire for the people of the world to stop being bystanders- and the very people who keep themselves from having liberty- using figurative language, symbolism and narrative method. Figurative language was used flawlessly in
In the poem "Let America Be America Again," Langston Hughes paints a vivid word picture of a depressed America in the 1930's. To many living in America, the idealism presented as the American Dream had escaped their grasp. In this poetic expression, a speaker is allowed to voice the unsung Americans' concern of how America was intended to be, had become to them, and could aspire to be again.
What is in a story if you can’t take something out of it and relate to your everyday life? The book “Typical American” by Gish Jen, gave me something that I never fully, and I probably still don’t, comprehend: foreigners, and their struggles in making a new life in another country. I have been on my share of trips, both domestic and abroad, but was never in a distant land long enough to feel the effects of the unknowing these people felt every day. The manner in which this story was presented has given me a new insight into, not only foreign nationals, but more importantly, how one goes about presenting emotional feeling not just through words, but setting, characterization, point of view, conflict, and theme.
American poetry, unlike other nations’ poetry, is still in the nascent stage because of the absence of a history in comparison to other nations’ poetry humming with matured voices. Nevertheless, in the past century, American poetry has received the recognition it deserves from the creative poetic compositions of Walt Whitman, who has been called “the father of American poetry.” His dynamic style and uncommon content is well exhibited in his famous poem “Song of Myself,” giving a direction to the American writers of posterity. In addition, his distinct use of the line and breath has had a huge impression on the compositions of a number of poets, especially on the works of the present-day poet Allen Ginsberg, whose debatable poem “Howl” reverberates with the traits of Whitman’s poetry. Nevertheless, while the form and content of “Howl” may have been impressed by “Song of Myself,” Ginsberg’s poem expresses a change from Whitman’s use of the line, his first-person recital, and his vision of America. As Whitman’s seamless lines are open-ended, speaking the voice of a universal speaker presenting a positive outlook of America, Ginsberg’s poem, on the contrary, uses long lines that end inward to present the uneasiness and madness that feature the vision of America that Ginsberg exhibits through the voice of a prophetic speaker.
Whitman’s approach to poetry is a reflection of his thought. These thoughts are free and wild, and his typical run-on sentences and his endless litanies of people and places represent the thoughts trying to be conveyed. The overall effect of these run-on sentences provides the reader with a feeling of greatness and of freedom. All of the feelings that are evoked from Whitman’s style can be classified as quintessentially American democratic feelings. The belief that Whitman had no style would imply that Americans as a society have no style, a statement that not only Whitman but Emerson and Thoreau as well fought against through their writings. Whitman and Emerson fighting for the same cause is not coincidental, Whitman has often been viewed as the “child” of Emerson, his work being greatly influenced by Emerson. Whitman’s technique of looking at everything as a whole and always opposed to breaking up the whole can be linked to his belief of unity within our country and the reason why he took the Civil War extremely hard and personal.
The poem America by Claude McKay is on its surface a poem combining what America should be and what this country stands for, with what it actually is, and the attitude it projects amongst the people. Mckay uses the form of poetry to express how he, as a Jamaican immigrant, feels about America. He characterizes the bittersweet relationship between striving for the American dream, and being denied that dream due to racism. While the America we are meant to see is a beautiful land of opportunity, McKay see’s as an ugly, flawed, system that crushes the hopes and dreams of the African-American people.
For years literature has molded and shaped the minds of many Americans for better or worse. Literature gives us entertainment and knowledge about things we may not have the opportunity to experience in our everyday lives. These written works have the power to influence readers and alter one’s opinions. This is just what Louis Simpson aimed to do, he was skeptical of the idea that America was picture perfect. During his life, he served in World War II, experiencing it all primarily. The victory of World War II left Americans feeling on top and unstoppable. Simpson fed off of this overwhelming optimism translating it into his poems (Faville). His goal was to pick apart the fantasized image we created for our country and expose the real truth
Denotations and connotations inherent in the word "America" in different works of American literature have a number of similarities and differences. Often, the definition of the word is not known at the beginning of a work and one of the thematic elements is the search for the true "America," whatever it may be for the author in question. Many American authors raise the question, "What is America?" and go about answering it in their own way. This is, perhaps, the only common element across the great variety of works in the collective body of American literature, that "America" means different things to different authors, and that one of the beautiful aspects of America is this diversity of views.
Walt Whitman is considered the foremost poet of American democracy of his time. Not only did he fully embrace it, but he believed that American democracy was more than a political system, but a way of life (Casale 48). Many of his personal experiences influenced his deep democratic point of view (48). As a volunteer at an army hospital during the American Civil War, he saw many die and became increasingly grateful for the opportunities provided by the American government (Mirsky). Later, as he was residing in New York City, Whitman witnessed America face urbanization. He loved the diversity of the cities and believed it was possible because of democracy (Brand). This adoration of democracy is apparent in many of Whitman’s works, such as “Drum-Taps”
While the poem can be termed to be democratic, both in subject matter and its language, Whitman is viewed to be cataloging the ‘new’ America that he is seeing around him. The poem includes subject matter such as relationships, patriotism, heroes, family and ancestors, and a view on social commentaries too.
The American ‘can-do-spirit’ is a well-known term, and many texts, poems, books and movies revolve around this outstanding ‘can-do-spirit’, which appears to be significant for the average American’s self-image. Two poems focused on this spirit are Dedication for a Plot of Ground by William Carlos Williams and Nobody Loses All the Time by E. E. Cummings, both by American writers, written 16 years apart. Even though both poems contemplate the American ‘can-do-spirit’, they seem to have two different ideas regarding what this so called spirit is all about. One praises it, and one mugs it.