Analysis of a Poem “We wear the mask”

Amber Davis Professor homosexualism Literature 101 February 28, 2013 We Wear the Mask The linguistic communication rime We abide the masquerade costume by capital of Minnesota Laurence Dunbar is a write about the Afri lav American race, and how they had to conceal their unhappiness and anger from whites. This poetry was write in 1895, which is around the era when slavery was abolished. Dunbar, life in this time period, was able to experience the tired of(p) effects of racism, hatred and prejudice against blacks at its worst.Using literary techniques such as alliteration, fable, persona, cacophony, apostrophe and paradox, Paul Dunbars poem suggests blacks of his time wore block outs of smiling facets to hide their true impressionings. In the first stanza, he starts off with the title of the poem stating, we wear the masquerade that grins and lies (1). In the first bourn he drug abuses a metaphor to explain the mask that is put on to show grins. Of course on that ac id is no actual mask, but the mask can be a representation of a role player personality that is happy or blissful.It could be tell that the reason for this mask is to prevent their tormentors from starting all controversy. Dunbar besides uses a nonher metaphor, This debt we pay to human rascality (3). Obviously he does not mean that thither is a debt to human guile that he is paid with money, but kinda since blacks behave always been seen as deceptive since slave times, they must forever decease in it. Since slave times blacks have not been respected. pull down after blacks received the veracious to voter turnout and own land, the federal system still do it hard for blacks to make a break by means of.The use of metaphor is used to describe the overwhelming struggles blacks had to go through in a white mans world. Through the use of metaphors, Dunbar implies the feelings the blacks once had to fake in order to not get into any disturb. The sulphur stanza, especially, emphasizes the poems paradox and alliteration. This stanza really goes into the mind of the person speaking, and the exit is a part of the reason wherefore they wear masks. The poem reads, Why should the world be over-wise,/ In counting all our tears and sighs? / Nay, let them plainly see s, while/ We wear our masks (6-9). Essentially, the person of this poem is asking wherefore should the world get the right to know why they are truly upset, and potentially use it against them instead, have pride, hold your head up high, and put on your mask. In doing so, the literary terminal paradox comes into play. This poem is about the true feelings of blacks beingness hidden can buoy masks, when also the poem itself hides the cardinal issue of racism from even being mentioned that entirely is a paradox because the poem has a mask on as well.This poem can also be seen as a paradox because this so called we is supposed to be wearing a mask when in item they are expressing their fee lings and becoming vulnerable, aka no more mask. Although each stanza has a bit of alliteration, the encourage stanza is the most dominant. Dunbar writes, Why should the world be over-wise,/ In counting all our tears and sighs? / Nay, let them but see us, while/ We wear our masks (6-9). The alliteration in this stanza is used heavily with the letter w. With the use of this alliteration, it creates a sense of flow that helps the speaker get his point across more smoothly. Although the poem is more cacophonic, and harsh, rather than euphonic, and harmonious, the use of alliteration helps highlight the importance of this stanzas sayings. The alliteration aspect of this stanza really helps reveal why the blacks continue to keep a mask up since they do not want otherwises to know their weakness. The net stanza is a plea to God, or in other words an apostrophe.Dunbar writes, We smile, but, O great christ, our cries/ To thee from tortured souls nobble (10-11). In writing this, Dunba r makes an apostrophe to the absent Christ since Christ is not currently present in the poem. This verse brings about an emotional side of the speaker that we have not seen in the play, which is the essential effect of apostrophe. In a sense, the speaker is able to take the condense from masks to addressing the fact that they are being tortured the fact that they are being tortured is exactly why they wear the masks they do, to show they are not intimidated.Through the use of apostrophe, Dunbar is able to express the emotions of the reader, which ties into why masks need to be warn. Overall, the speakers awareness of putting on a fake facade to avoid trouble is apparent through literary devices such as alliteration, metaphors, and apostrophe. Author Dunbar creates a somewhat cacophonic feel to the poem to portray the hurt of these people who must wear masks. Dunbar also uses end rhyme in all of his ersus. The first and second, and also the third and one-quarter of each line use th e long I sound for end rhyme except for the outlive lines of each stanza. Through the use of many literary devices Dunbar is able to capture the true meaning behind the mask, which is a disguise that camouflages the actual emotions of the mask wearer. Even though the mask is a grinning mask, the face under it is broken and frustrated, but the mask wearer volition never show it.