William Cowper wrote this controversial poem to voice the thoughts of the slaves who did not have the power to do so. He was part of the anti-slavery movement and stood firmly for the freedom and rights of slaves. The speaker in the poem is an African slave who was “bought and sold” (line 5) in slave trade by Englishmen. The poet chose to depict this voice as such to engage the reader as only a slave would know of the true conditions of slavery and he, telling his story, is likely to cause a stir in the reader’s emotions. Another possible reason for the writer choosing such a speaker is to defy the norm of slavery- that of slaves having little or no rights, especially the right of freedom of expression. This slave however, is brave enough to voice his thoughts with the hopes that people will come to see the truth in the matter i.e. the harsh reality of slavery and how slaves are still human beings who have emotions and …show more content…
This metaphor allows the reader to immediately visualize the contrast in that statement. He gives the hearts of the slave masters the property of being hard like iron as he feels they have no mercy and compassion. The vivid imagery creates a strong impression against slavery in the readers mind. Personification can be found in the lines “Sighs must fan it, tears must water,/ Sweat of ours must dress the soil.” (Lines 19-20). By using the imagery of his sighs, sweat and tears the speaker relates the hardship in the work he does and he personifies it to allow thhe reader to create a connection and feel sympathy Using personification in poems helps the reader develop a connection between a distant object or idea and feel empathy or sympathy for that idea or object. Poets often use personification to help the reader relate to the concept being presented, and to give a more complete understanding of a difficult concept to