Disabled And Maya Owen Analysis

The ways in which Wilfred Owen’s Disabled and Maya Angelou’s Still I Rise present the overcoming of burdens are very intriguing. Each character possesses a burden that stands in their way, holding them back in life. In Disabled, the individual’s burden is the disability, trauma, and loss afflicted onto him by war and in Still I Rise racism, stereotypes, and a rough history endured by africans is Angelou’s burden. Though the authors experience very different problems and portray opposite atmospheres they contain similarities and use many of the same devices such as symbolism and juxtaposed antithesis points to deliver their messages.

Angelou expresses her positive and confident approach to overcoming stereotypes by using many technical features.

The individual “in a ghastly suit of grey” presented by the persona has “lost his colour very far from here, poured it down shell-holes till the veins ran dry” after the war. This means a loss of blood, but symbolically “a loss of color” could mean a loss of personality and flair, as well as all the colors that make up himself leaving him only grey. His colors are lost ‘very far from here’ suggesting the his true and previous self is distant, lost on the grounds of war, or trapped deep inside of himself. If he has been lost far away it also makes him separated and distant from society because his colors are stranded in a depressing, forlorn world. The loss could also shows how he has been torn away and ruined both mentally and

Both their characters have been affected by lies that contribute to their burdens. In Still I Rise, Angelou has been written down in history with “bitter, twisted lies” that led to the creation of certain stereotypes she suffers from today. In Disabled, the character’s lie has been written down by the men who recruited him. He was promised to be praised as a hero with many luxuries such a jewelled daggers but these promises were false. The difference in how the characters overcame these barriers is in how the let it influence them. In Still I Rise, Angelou used these lies to empower her, helping her rise. She states “you may trod me in the very dirt but still, like dust, I rise.” It shows how she finds the positives and support in her burdens to rise when she compares herself to dust which is a lighter and less harsh term than dirt. However in Disabled, the character lets the lies control his future and accepts a dull, depressing faith instead of making the most. “Now, he is old; his back will never brace; He’s lost his colour very far from here,” shows how he has allowed the war to make him distant from everyone and the use of ‘never’ is a harsh reminder that he can’t change his decisions and indicates his loss of hope. Both characters also have direct people they blame for their burdens that have made them outcasts in