Maya Angelou and Alice Walker

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Recommended: Maya Angelou struggles in the literary world

Two well regarded and recognized poets, Maya Angelou and Alice Walker, wrote lots of different renowned poetry that is appreciated for its beauty and its truth. Both poets are African American woman, although in different times, many of their words rang true to one other. Their work can be compared and contrasted by understanding the poems as two separate pieces of work, and then looking at how each are similar and different in their own respects.

Alice Walker grew up the youngest of eight children. She was in an accident as a child that left her blind in one eye. She is best known for her work The Color Purple. Much of her work is focused on Civil Rights for African Americans. In Alice Walker’s poem Remember? she begins by posing a question. Just by the title, the reader begins to believe that this poem is taking place in the past, it may cause the reader to think of another time where they have been asked the question, remember? To paraphrase, the poem begins rather dark, a hate for Walker’s physical appearance, which makes reference to her past time when her eye had been shot by a BB gun. She continues with detest towards her life and the way that she is living her life, "holding their babies / cooking their meals / sweeping their yards / washing their clothes." After these first two stanzas, the poem shifts into a powerful and defiant outlook. She no longer lets this hate for herself, or the hate that comes from the oppression against her skin color to affect her. She turns from looking at the bad times that have struck her life, as moments for possibility for the future.

Walker includes rhetorical question in the title, Remember? There is the use of repetition when she says, “I am the woman” and “I am the girl,” whi...

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...reader to walk away, giving anyone the chance who is willing to stand against the injustices of society. She uses her own personal afflictions in order to better create a stronger, individualized woman after the acquisition of hope. She uses her story; she enlists the help of the reader to put justice and hope back into society. Therefore, "Let us begin."

The poetry by these two poets creates several different images, both overall, each with a different goal, have achieved their purposes. Though from slightly different times, they can both be recognized and appreciated as poets who did not fear the outside, and were willing to put themselves out there to create both truth and beauty.

Works Cited

Clark, Tara. "Alice Walker." Alice Walker. Mark Canada, 1999. Web. 09 Mar. 2014

Tegr, Maja. "Phenomenal Women." Maja RSS. Maja, 2014. Web. 11 Mar. 2014.

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