Poem Analysis: Incident By Cauntee Cullen

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The poem, “Incident” by Cauntee Cullen, is a depressing ballad that addresses the issue of racism African Americans are subjected to in United States. The poem is narrated through an African American male who is reminiscing about childhood experience of riding a bus Baltimore, Maryland. During the ride, the young happy boy encounters another boy the same age but he is white. The speaker flashes a smile however than grinning in return, the boy abhorrently calls him “nigger.” Subsequently the speaker mentions that the incident in the bus was the only memory he can recall throughout his seven month duration in Baltimore. Furthermore, the poet uses great figurative language in order for the reader to understand the poem. The title of the poem warns