Drum Dream Girl Poet and author, Margarita Engle, in her poem, Drum Dream Girl, inspires many young individuals to never give up on their dreams, even if no one around them believes in them. She includes a changing tone, history about the Chinese-African-Cuban culture, and a strong use of pathos. A story is told about a little girl, Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, who dreamt about playing the drums with an all-boys group; which was frowned upon in her tribe. In the first Stanza of Drum Dream Girl, Engle starts off the poem with imagery. She describes the island by calling it “an island of music in a city of drum beats” to represent the importance of music and most importantly the sound of drums in their culture and everyday life. Also in this …show more content…
This is when the climax of the story takes place. The disapproving father finally helped his daughter follow her dreams, by bringing her to the teacher. In the next stanza, the teacher heard her play the drums and he was amazed by her skill. Engle says next, “the girl knew so much be he taught her more and more and more”. She repeats “and more” to show how much the teacher had her practicing, even though it is against their culture. Finally, another person believes in Zaldarriaga and believes she can have a chance to play with the boys. Stanza XVII, Engle uses repetition again to describe her commitment to her drumming, “and she practiced, and she practiced, and she practiced”. This is also used to build suspense for what will happen next, and it shows her unwavering passion. In the next stanza, the drum dream girl’s teacher finally believes she is ready to play her small bongo drums in the starlit café. Engle also describes the beautiful setting, “outdoors at a starlit café that looked like a garden”. The reader can connect the little girl’s strong dream and the star lit café, by saying she “reached for the stars” and accomplished her