I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
Caged Bird Essay
Many unfortunate individuals, at any point in history, have felt trapped and/or helpless during a complicated situation. Whether it is an African American enslaved during the Civil War, a victim of the Holocaust enclosed in horrifying memories, or a girl trapped in her inability to voice her thoughts, all of these situations can be considered horrendous, at a certain level. The poem “Sympathy,” by Laurence Dunbar, visibly expresses how African Americans were “caged” during the callous times of slavery. This poem was meant to symbolize those who have felt trapped at one time in their lives, with a metaphoric caged bird. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, a memoir by Maya Angelou, also exemplifies the anguish people have felt during times of desperation and “confinement.” More specifically, Angelou portrays this grief by contrasting similar characteristics between certain characters in her memoir and the caged bird in Laurence Dunbar’s poem. The incredibly, prominent …show more content…
Mrs. Flowers, “the aristocrat of Black Stamps,” cannot leave Black Stamps, or any other inadequately constructed town established for people of color, because quality towns built for white people were segregated from all African Americans, no matter how high that individual’s status may be in society. The black section of Stamps resembled the “cruel bars” in the poem “Sympathy,” because once you are in Black Stamps, there is no way to get out. This situation results in the lack of opportunity Mrs. Flowers had to obtain a better education and a superior career. Segregation in America also relates to the reason why Mrs. Flowers is not treated well in society. As stated by Marguerite (Maya Angelou, herself), “It was fortunate that I never saw her [Mrs. Flowers] in the company of powhitefolks …who tend to think of their whiteness as an evenizer…” (Page
Many unfortunate individuals, at any point in history, have felt trapped and/or helpless during a complicated situation. Whether it is an African American enslaved during the Civil War, a victim of the Holocaust enclosed in horrifying memories, or a girl trapped in her inability to voice her thoughts, all of these situations can be considered horrendous, at a certain level. The poem “Sympathy,” by Laurence Dunbar, visibly expresses how African Americans were “caged” during the callous times of slavery. This poem was meant to symbolize those who have felt trapped at one time in their lives, with a metaphoric caged bird. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, a memoir by Maya Angelou, also exemplifies the anguish people have felt during times of desperation and “confinement.” More specifically, Angelou portrays this grief by contrasting similar characteristics between certain characters in her memoir and the caged bird in Laurence Dunbar’s poem. The incredibly, prominent …show more content…
Mrs. Flowers, “the aristocrat of Black Stamps,” cannot leave Black Stamps, or any other inadequately constructed town established for people of color, because quality towns built for white people were segregated from all African Americans, no matter how high that individual’s status may be in society. The black section of Stamps resembled the “cruel bars” in the poem “Sympathy,” because once you are in Black Stamps, there is no way to get out. This situation results in the lack of opportunity Mrs. Flowers had to obtain a better education and a superior career. Segregation in America also relates to the reason why Mrs. Flowers is not treated well in society. As stated by Marguerite (Maya Angelou, herself), “It was fortunate that I never saw her [Mrs. Flowers] in the company of powhitefolks …who tend to think of their whiteness as an evenizer…” (Page