Sympathy And The Caged Bird Comparison Essay

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Since the time during slavery and until the end of the sixties, African Americans were way below White people during this time. They were restricted and cannot do things that other people can do. Maya Angelou, and Paul Laurence Dunbar, used their experiences for inspirations for their poems “Caged Bird” and “Sympathy.” The birds from “Caged Bird” and “Sympathy” are used to be the protagonist and to symbolize people being restricted, also the bird in both poems have similarities and differences between them. The birds from “Caged Bird” and “Sympathy” share some similarities between the two of them. One thing that is similar between the two birds are when the bird in in the cage and starts singing. “For the caged bird sings of freedom” (Angelou 36-37). “It is not a carol of joy or glee” (Dunbar 18). As as result, this is similar because the birds sing to ask for help; It sang to get free because it is very imperative. Another thing that is similar is that they are restricted in a cage. “Down his narrow cage” (Angelou 9). “I know what the caged bird feels” (Dunbar 1). This is a similarity because the caged …show more content…

One difference is the way they are held in the cage. “His wings are clipped and legs are tied” (Angelou 12-13). “I know why the caged bird beats its wing. Till its blood is red on the cruel bars” (Dunbar 8-9). In the “Caged Bird” the bird's legs and wings are fettered in a narrow cage, which made it precluded. In “Sympathy” the caged bird flaps its wings to the bars, so it can move. Another difference is the way they sing for help. “The caged bird sing in a fearful trill” (Angelou 15-16). “It is not a carol of joy or glee, but a prayer that sends from his heart’s deep core.” (Dunbar 19). These differences are important because the bird in “Caged Bird,” sings in fear, and the bird from “Sympathy,” sings a prayer from the heart. Therefore, these birds have different personalities, which made them very

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