ipl-logo

Paul Laurence Dunbar Sympathy Analysis

411 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Imagery in paul dunbar's poem sympathy

Analysis of “Sympathy” In the 20th century poem “Sympathy” Paul Laurence Dunbar uses imagery, irony, and repetition to develop the three shifting tones. In addition, he points out that without freedom individuals will feel trapped and wounded. Throughout stanza one, Dunbar uses rhyme, repetition, and imagery to convey a tone of innocence. Imagery of a bird singing and the first bud of flowers opening gives us a visual representation of pleasure and being born new, thereby, a feeling of innocence. In the repeating line “I know how the caged bird feels,” to emphasize the pleasure of freedom that the bird feels. Dunbar also uses an exclamation mark to make the reader feel excited and hopeful. Furthermore, the use of end rhyme supports the …show more content…

The images of “blood on cruel bars” and “pain throbbing on old scars” gives a feeling of darkness woundedness. The repetition of “beats his wings” continues to develop the tone of darkness. In addition, Dunbar shows the shift of freedom to the feelings of being trapped. The bird has no escape from his cage. Furthermore the end rhyme supports the foreboding tone and feelings of being trapped through the words “wing,” “cling,” “bars,” and “scars.” The diction emphasizes the trappedness the bird feels. The shift in tone from innocence to feeling trapped supports the overarching theme that without freedom individuals will feel trapped and wounded. The third stanza builds on irony, imagery, and repetition in order to further develop the theme. Again the tone shifts to a feeling of sorrow and mourning. The bird’s song is no longer a carol of joy but a prayer to “the heaven.” The only freedom he sees his through death. Furthermore, the repetition of “I know why the caged bird sings” supports the sorrowful mourning tone. The imagery of “he beats his bars” and his “wings are beat” portray the feelings of being trapped and wounded. Through these devices, Dunbar builds on the overall theme that without freedom individuals cannot sing their songs or feel joy. Dunbar’s poem “Sympathy” reveals how outside forces, like a metaphorical cage, can make an individual

Show More
Related

Birds And Other Things We Placed In Our Hearts By Timmy Reed

1259 Words | 6 Pages

In Timmy Reeds short story, “Birds and Other Things We Placed in Our Hearts,” there is a significant amount of imagery and symbolism through the authors use of style, characterization, and theme. The profound use of symbolism in the authors style of writing greatly captures the use of imagery throughout the story. The beginning sentence of the story reads, “As our chests hollowed out, we filled them with birds” (Reed). This beginning sentence is simply stating that the hearts of humans have withered away, leaving them feeling empty, and to fill that emptiness they filled their cavity with birds.

Read More

Analysis Of Empathy By Stephen Dunnn

974 Words | 4 Pages

Poetry is an effective means used to convey a variety of emotions, from grief, to love, to empathy. This form of text relies heavily on imagery and comparison to inflict the reader with the associated feelings. As such, is displayed within Stephen Dunn 's, aptly named poem, Empathy. Quite ironically, Dunn implores strong diction to string along his cohesive plot of a man seeing the world in an emphatic light. The text starts off by establishing the military background of the main protagonist, as he awaits a call from his lover in a hotel room.

Read More

Summary Of The Poem 'Hurt Hawks' By Robinson Jeffers

1294 Words | 6 Pages

Symbolism plays a crucial role in relating both works of literature to the main theme of freedom. Robinson Jeffers uses symbolism all throughout his poem. One of the major symbols being the hawk in of itself. Birds, in general, are related to a sense of freedom, the sky is the limit. Birds have the ability to fly, and flying in itself represents freedom.

Read More

Night By Paul Laurence Dunbar Rhetorical Devices

312 Words | 2 Pages

In the poem, Paul Laurence Dunbar employs the rhetorical device of rhyme structure to contrast the bondage of individual sorrow with the liberation of action. Although the speaker does not claim divine authority, the poem’s orator possesses a definitive tone, bolstering the argument and beckoning the audience. The first lines of the initial stanza, “I am no priest of crooks nor creeds / For human wants and human needs / are more to me than prophets’ deeds,” display Dunbar’s use of rhyme structure to connect a single idea. Dunbar emphasizes the deeds of a prophet, a religious figure chosen by God to interpret His Will, to perhaps convey that time spent discerning the Will of God causes individuals to lose sight of the wants and needs around them.

Read More

Compare And Contrast Angelou And Paul Laurence Dunbar

535 Words | 3 Pages

Angelou and Dunbar show similarities when they describe feeling trapped like caged birds, but their portrayal of the birds contrast in their actions

Read More

To Kill A Caged Bird Analysis

1630 Words | 7 Pages

If we compare the bird’s wings to Tom Robinson’s hope, the feet to his heart, and his action of  running to the action of opening his throat to sing, we can visualize the song that Tom Robinson would sing, one about him losing hope and not wanting anyone to control his life anymore, and so in this manner he is very much like the caged bird in this poem. Similarly, Tom Robinson’s physical struggles can be compared to the caged bird in the poem “Sympathy”. In the novel it’s written “Tom

Read More

Allusion In 'Theme For English B' By Langston Hughes

752 Words | 4 Pages

In Dunbar’s poem “Sympathy” there is end rhyme present but no real rhyme scheme. Those are some of the rhythmic elements Dunbar uses in his writing. Dunbar writes his poems on very serious matters, such as life and dreams and identity. In his poem “We Wear the Mask” Dunbar writes about people wearing masks but the true meaning of the poem is how people will try to hide their identity to look like a better more perfect person. In his poem “Life” dunbar writes about how life is not always good and at t8imes life seems to be really bad.

Read More

Comparing Poems Sympathy And Maya Angelou's Caged Bird

409 Words | 2 Pages

In two poems “Sympathy” written by Paul Laurence Dunbar and “Caged Bird” written by Maya Angelou talk about a poor bird that is trapped in a cage and wants to be free. It longs for everything that the free bird has but it cannot achieve it. In both of the poems, there is a use of comparisons between freedom and nature. It is also interpreted from the poems that the use of a song is a form of coping for the birds. Both of the birds sing for their freedom and sing through their pain.

Read More

Literary Analysis Of Louise Erdrich's 'Captivity'

957 Words | 4 Pages

Captivity is defined as the state of being imprisoned or confined. A tragic experience is given a whole new perspective from Louise Erdrich 's poem, “Captivity”. Through descriptive imagery and a melancholic tone, we can see the poem and theme develop in her words. Erdrich takes a quote from Mary Rowlandson’s narrative about her imprisonment by the Native Americans and her response to this brings readers a different story based off of the epigraph. Louise Erdrich compiles various literary devices to convey her theme of sympathy, and her poem “Captivity” through specific and descriptive language brings a whole new meaning to Mary Rowlandson’s narrative.

Read More

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelou Analysis

935 Words | 4 Pages

The singing caged bird in the article refers to her having no other means to change her situation other than "singing," that is using literary works such as poetry and novels. 2. During the interview with the poet, comedian Chappelle admitted

Read More

Imagery In Mary Oliver's Wild Geese

842 Words | 4 Pages

Mary Oliver’s poem “Wild Geese” was a text that had a profound, illuminating, and positive impact upon me due to its use of imagery, its relevant and meaningful message, and the insightful process of preparing the poem for verbal recitation. I first read “Wild Geese” in fifth grade as part of a year-long poetry project, and although I had been exposed to poetry prior to that project, I had never before analyzed a poem in such great depth. This process of becoming intimately familiar with the poem—I can still recite most of it to this day—allowed it to have the effect it did; the more one engulfs oneself in a text, the more of an impact that text will inevitably have. “Wild Geese” was both revealing and thought-provoking: reciting it gave me

Read More

Paul Laurence Dunbar Sympathy Themes

914 Words | 4 Pages

Hope, Rage, and Sacrifice Oppression is an illness that has plagued the world for centuries. This is shown in “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou as the birds are trapped by oppression and the birds must break free from it. Maya Angelou and Paul Laurence Dunbar use the central symbols of the free bird and the caged bird to reveal the theme of oppression. The symbols of rage and hope accompany the theme oppression.

Read More

Sympathy And The Caged Bird Poem Analysis

443 Words | 2 Pages

In the same way, the two poems share the same imagery; birds being treated like slaves. Both birds are being tortured by their owners. In Sympathy, it says,

Read More

Caged Bird Analysis Essay

700 Words | 3 Pages

Lines one through seven define the free bird as one that “floats downstream till the current ends and dips his wing in the orange sun rays” (Angelou) this is a representation of freedom and joy. The second and third stanza lines, eight through fourteen defines the caged bird that “stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage” (Angelou) where these words reference isolation and despair compared to the freedom in stanza one. These lines create a visual response of the bird’s environments. The third stanza is repeated at the end of the poem for prominence as it reflects the two birds are so different.

Read More

Compare And Contrast Caged Bird And Sympathy

1215 Words | 5 Pages

In the poems “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou, both portray captive birds that sing. However in “Sympathy”, the bird pleads with god for freedom, whereas in “Caged Bird” the captive bird calls for help from a free bird. In “Sympathy” the bird knows what freedom feels like since there was a time where the bird was once free, but now is trapped. In the first stanza the use of imagery revealed how freedom felt before the bird was caged.

Read More

More about Paul Laurence Dunbar Sympathy Analysis

Related Topics

Open Document