Lucille Clifton's Poem For Delawd By African American Women

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We live in a patriarchal society with existing inequalities amongst men and women. There has been improvement, but every day we strive to fight for more equality between the sexes, especially when it comes to voicing opinions. Women are often discouraged from outspoken, based on the old belief that women should be “seen, not heard”. This collection of poetry is dedicated to giving a voice to one of the most silenced demographics in America, black women. All of these poems are written by African American women throughout various stages of their life. Within these poems, the inner thoughts, sentiments, and viewpoints that women have on society will be showcased through their own narrative, similar to an entry in their diary. Note …show more content…

This poem has earned this title because the speaker is explaining the origins of her strength, and how she can push forward through tough times. This poem could emulate the diary of a black woman describing how she has to endure so much in life, and often time more than her peers. Not only does this black woman have to face racism and injustice due to the color of her skin, but she also has to deal with sexism and unfair treatment due to her gender. Some may see it impossible for someone to function while dealing with such a doubled head sword, but this black woman still manages to continue on her path in life despite it all. This diary entry represents the black woman’s strength.
The third entry, “Awakening” contains a second poem written by Lucille Clifton, titled “come home from the movies”. This poem represents a black woman awakening in her community and noticing all of the various factors that are breaking up the union in the black community as well as preventing their success. Within this poem, this woman is urging her people to gain this awakening too, and realize how they have gotten distracted from what is important in life. This diary entry represents the black woman’s knowledge by showing how she can identify when her community is headed for

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