We Wear The Mask Rhetorical Devices
In his poem “We Wear the Mask,” Paul Laurence Dunbar describes societal pressures, uses extended metaphors, and conveys the speakers troubles through various rhetorical devices like rhyme structure, enjambment and censura in order to showcase that although people may put on a happy face, a majority of them are struggling under a mask of lies and deceit, ultimately illustrating that although people may look content, it’s a façade created in order to please society.
To begin, the title “We Wear the Mask” is really an extended metaphor as well as a central theme in the poem. The speaker, Dunbar, explains what the mask is in the first stanza. He explains that it’s a tool meant for fooling others, “We wear the mask that grins and lies, / It hides
…show more content…
One device he uses is enjambment to add to the stressed and tourtured tone of the poem. In the last stanza, Dunbar writes, “We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries / To thee from tortured souls arise” (Dunbar 10-11). This is the first time the speaker outright admits to the suffering beneath the mask. The enjambment between these lines makes the reader speed up while reading as well as gives a sense of power and exclamation to his words. These lines are where the theme of the poem culminates and reveals the writer's purpose for writing the piece. Which is to bring to light the suffering that groups of people experience on a daily basis. Another device used that contributes to the overall attitude of the poem is the rhyme scheme and the rhyming structure of the stanzas. The first stanza of the poem follows AABBA. The last stanza also follows this rhyme scheme besides the sixth and final line, “We wear the mask!” The middle stanza is the shortest stanza and has a rhyme scheme of AABC. By breaking this scheme in the middle of the poem, Dunbar makes the reader slow down to draw attention to the last two lines in stanza three, “Nay, let them only see us, while / We wear the mask” (Dunbar 8-9). This line also utilizes enjambment, which makes the reader slow down while reading this line instead of speed up like in other cases of
African American Culture In Langston Hughes And We Wear The Mask
802 Words | 4 PagesSuch personification mirrors Dunbar’s use of figurative language, which relates the poems in more ways than one. Dunbar touches on human features such as cheeks and eyes in his poem but also uses a spiritual element to advance his point of view. Furthermore, “We Wear the Mask” was written in 1896; a period in American history that was post-slavery but still had widespread discrimination. The spiritual connotation within Dunbar’s poem can allude to African American churches and/or the hymns slaves sung on plantations. Nevertheless, the struggle of African Americans is a symbol of both presented
Paul Laurence Dunbar We Wear The Mask
548 Words | 3 PagesPaul Laurence Dunbar's "We Wear the Mask" is a powerful poem that addresses the complexities of identity, oppression, and the human experience. Through the use of vivid imagery, symbolism, and metaphor, Dunbar explores the ways in which individuals are forced to conceal their true selves in order to navigate the societal norms and expectations of the world around them. The opening stanza of the poem sets the stage for the metaphorical mask that is worn by the speaker and those around them: "We wear the mask that grins and lies, / It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes.
Summary Of In Defense Of Masks By Kenneth Gergen
267 Words | 2 PagesHe wants people to avoid thinking that developing only one true self identity is healthy. A mask allows an individual to see his or her full potential by not having a true identity. Masks have multiple identities based on the certain situations and environments (circumstances) the person is having(undergoing). I agree with Gergens interpretation (assertion) and his psychological
Oppression Of African-Americans
345 Words | 2 PagesI feel like everyone has had to wear a mask at some point in their life. People are always so afraid of other people’s opinion and what they’ll think. It is evident in the poem, that at that time blacks were still afraid of what other people would do if they really said how they felt. They would put on this act that made them seem happy to be free, but behind that they would still be upset about all the rights they still didn’t possess, line one “We wear the mask that grins and lies”. African-Americans realized how hard it would be for them to gain all that everyone else had, stated in line thirteen “Beneath our feet, and long the mile”, and were scared of that, too.
Compare/Contrast
802 Words | 4 PagesThis common theme is very apparent but it is even more so in “We Wear the Mask” when Dunbar writes, “We wear the mask that grins and lies, it hides our cheeks and shades our eyes” (Dunbar 1-2).
Masks in 'We Wear the Mask' and 'To Kill a Mockingbird'
1218 Words | 5 PagesIn Paul Laurence Dunbar’s poem, “We Wear the Mask” the speaker wears a mask to hide his internal suffering because he does not want the rest of the world to think he is weak. This poem relates the prejudice black people face against white people. The speaker starts the poem with the lines, “We wear the mask that grins and lies,” (1). Here he describes the kind of “masks” that he wears.
We Wear A Mask Hyperbole
502 Words | 3 PagesMasks are worn by individuals to cover part or all of their faces, usually as a disguise. This quote illustrates how people disguise their true feelings by wearing masks with grins. In actuality, he is not referring to a physical mask; he uses the mask to symbolize hiding their true feelings from the outer world, as a strategy to protect oneself from others. A rhetorical device Dunbar uses is hyperbole, which can be seen in the line "With torn and bleeding hearts we smile." (Dunbar p.654).
What Does We Wear The Mask Mean
967 Words | 4 PagesPoetry has always been used to express one’s emotions and thoughts about the world. Emotions and desperation are the main vocal points of the poem, “We Wear the Mask” by Paul Laurence Dunbar. The poem, “We Wear the Mask” by Dunbar was written in the 19th century during a time when many African Americans were oppressed in the United States due to segregation laws but this did not halt Dunbar from gaining recognition from the poem while shedding light on the struggles of African Americans’ emotions. In, “We Wear the Mask” Paul Dunbar uses repetition, punctuation, rhyming scheme, enjambed lines, and end-stopped lines to indicate that people repress their emotions deep down, never expressing them leading them to crack under the pressure of society.
Let Usa Be America Again Rhetorical Devices
326 Words | 2 PagesHe uses many rhetorical devices such as rhymes, metaphor, repetition, alliteration etc… Firstly, the whole poem’s structure is structured in a poetic way using rhyme schemes. He uses words like “dreamed” and “schemed(line 6 and 8), “wreathe” and “breathe”(
We Wear The Mask By Patrick Henry
726 Words | 3 PagesThe Poem “We wear the Mask” showed how people tend to hide their problems. Lines one through four states, We wear the mask that grins and lies, It hides our
What Does We Wear The Mask Mean
429 Words | 2 PagesWe Wear the Mask: Paul Laurence Dunbar Rating: ★★★★ Dunbar opens his poem by stating how he and others wear masks that “grins and lies.” They hide what they truly feel under a mask of smiles. He conveys how they hide their sorrows from the world and that they do not deserve to know their true feelings. He continues expressing this feeling of sadness and torture that is covered and hidden from the world by faking a sense of joy through singing, smiles, and lies. To start off, I really liked how the author picked a subject that can be relatable in many people’s lives.
Always Something More Beautiful Poem Analysis
750 Words | 3 PagesThe effect of enjambment demonstrates to the continuation of a sentence without any pause and then moves to the next stanza to complete the thought. Another poet’s auditory choice that Dunn’s poem uses, is long-running sentences, which it affects the sound of text and allowing the reader to read the poem with some fast pace. For example, the long running sentence in line 1 through line 5 demonstrates a pace on the text, allowing the reader to feel anxiety, or being in the competitive race: “This time I came to the starting place with my best running shoes and pure speed held back for the finish, came with only love of the clock and the underfooting and the other runners.”
Masking And Signification In Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man
914 Words | 4 PagesMasks hide the truth and obscure the facts. They form a barrier between what is real and what is an illusion. Yet, during from the moment blacks were brought to this continent in chains, to the moment they were granted civil rights in the 1960’s, masks were a method of survival. Another way of life for African Americans was the practice of signifying. Signifying is mostly seen in the black literary tradition as a means for African Americans to take back power from the white through misinformation and deception.
We Wear The Mask Literary Devices
861 Words | 4 PagesLiterary Analysis We Wear the Mask In the poem We Wear the Mask the author Paul Laurence Dunbar uses statements and lines to divulge and show the reader that the speaker has to “Wear A Mask” to cover their true self and that the speaker is having to lie and and put on a face and enclose their feelings because of their race. The speaker uses phrases such as “we wear a mask” to help contribute to the theme “Never oppress yourself because you feel cloistered”. The author uses outlying language and tone to express how the speaker feels in their environment. The Structure of this poem involves AABBC, CCDE, and AABBCE.
Summary Of We All Wear Masks By Nikki
524 Words | 3 PagesWe wear the masks they were hiding there emotions from other so that they woudnt jnotice and they would try hide. As a narrator i would choose the poem jabari unmasked and to pawerfully illustrate the themes of collaboration and culture and community
More about We Wear The Mask Rhetorical Devices
African American Culture In Langston Hughes And We Wear The Mask
802 Words | 4 PagesPaul Laurence Dunbar We Wear The Mask
548 Words | 3 PagesSummary Of In Defense Of Masks By Kenneth Gergen
267 Words | 2 PagesOppression Of African-Americans
345 Words | 2 PagesCompare/Contrast
802 Words | 4 PagesMasks in 'We Wear the Mask' and 'To Kill a Mockingbird'
1218 Words | 5 PagesWe Wear A Mask Hyperbole
502 Words | 3 PagesWhat Does We Wear The Mask Mean
967 Words | 4 PagesLet Usa Be America Again Rhetorical Devices
326 Words | 2 PagesWe Wear The Mask By Patrick Henry
726 Words | 3 PagesWhat Does We Wear The Mask Mean
429 Words | 2 PagesAlways Something More Beautiful Poem Analysis
750 Words | 3 PagesMasking And Signification In Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man
914 Words | 4 PagesWe Wear The Mask Literary Devices
861 Words | 4 PagesSummary Of We All Wear Masks By Nikki
524 Words | 3 Pages