She guides people to the right place for them. "The golden door" making it sound like New York is heaven.

She is very liberating to these people who have nowhere to go. The author probably thought that New York was perfect for people seeking religious freedom.

There is a lot of homeless people in New York that gather to try and get back on their feet.

She conveys so much emotion even though she is just a statue.

She wants to keep the free land great.

She watches over the city almost like a goddess. This is definitely about the statue of liberty and we can tell because of the mentions of the harbor/twin cities.

She welcomes everyone into New York.

She takes in people who have been often forgotten and cast away.

could possibly be another reference to greek mythology with Zeus.

I immediately think of the statue of liberty.

Colossus of Rhodes' legs are spread out in the statue.

She is referring to the colossus of Rhodes which was erected in honor of the sun god.

Something giant, possibly a statue.

Shows the many steps and how hard and complicated it must have been to make a shirt. A lot of work that is often taken for granted.

Bringing in a witness who had to watch all of this unfold, but unable to do anything because he's too far away. This could possibly be about how people are really apathetic to foreign affairs.

They didn't seem to care about the worker's safety.

Makes you kind of sad to think that they were working in such dangerous conditions just to make a shirt.

A sudden shift in tone from talking about the workers socializing to a fire.

introduces us suddenly into something darker.

Shows they didn't have many breaks and had to work while they talked.

Shows that these shirts were made by people who had lives but still had to work in terrible conditions.

Telling us that someone actually had to make the clothes you wear.

This could mean that a lot of the work behind making a shirt goes unnoticed.

Terms used to describe different parts or aspects of a shirt.

This could referencing how people may be profiting off of this horrible war.

A dream might be very tempting like eating sugar.

Just the thought of past dream could weigh you down.

A dream might always be on your mind.

Harlem was a bunch of people's dreams coming together and was very extravagant like an explosion.

Your dream might also get more attainable and better over time after you've already deferred it.

Like meat, your dream may have been a good at one point, but now it's not.

You might try to reify your dream but when you do, it gets away from you still.

Maybe it pains you to have to throw away your dream and it sticks with you still despite your dream never coming true.

The raisin being the dream and the sun being time making it whither away because it was forgotton.

Over time you will forget the dream you once had.

He's wondering where do dreams go once they have been put off or just never happen.

This poem is going to be about Harlem even though the poem may not seem like it.

hand him a gun and he'll "defeat them" or kill/wound them.

Saying that he's suited up in street clothes means that he never forgot where he came from

The M-16 is a rifle that shows that Nas came up from a place to violence.

He does cocaine like scarface which stimulates the nervous system and impairs you.

His flow is so good that even other artists are amazed.

He admits that he doesn't know how to start it, which means that he has a lot to say but doesn't know what to start with.

It was hard to survive in the New York rap game unless you had skill like Nas.

He could be referring to underground rap where not many artists make it out.

He's building up excitement for his verse by saying "its time"

"perfectly" really is a good way to end it because all their moves have been described as perfect.

Saying that you love something like a country is a very deep kind of love that has been an important part of your life.

This shows that the people that are playing aren't pros and they will lose their balance sometimes, but are still dedicated enough to take the fall.

Just like in the beginning, shooting in basketball is one of the more softer and delicate parts of the game.

"explodes" to me shows how much dedication the forward has because of how much effort he is putting into it.

They get there opprotunity they've been passing for.

They contnue to pass it back and forth, possibly waiting for something to develop.

Using the word "brothers" while talking about their great connection, shows the deeper meaning of this poem which is referring to the author's great friend.

Everyone on the team is so in-sync that they know what they're supposed to do.

This shows how special this moment is because in basketball, it's rare when plays work out perfectly.

Waiting for someone to get open, using patience to decide his next move.

Again using specific words that make basketball seem like an art form.

The defender is so stunned that he can't even see him.

He was so quick that the defender looked nailed to the floor as he moved past him.

"Scissoring" meaning he's is cutting quickly through the defense.

Saying he was "already" shoveling the pass makes it clear how fast the game goes.

It shows how graceful and physical the game is. "spinning" (graceful) and "strike" (physical).

The ball is really just "orange leather" but in the game of basketball it's very important.

Starts off with "perfectly" to complete the last line to complete the cliff-hanger on whether or not he would get the rebound.

He shields people away and jumps to make sure he has the best chance of getting the rebound.

"gangly" meaning very tall, but also thin. Most centers are like this.

This line builds up tension before revealing the outcome.

definitely about basketball. "kisses" implies that it very gently touched the rim.

A basketball term used to describe a moment when the offense gets the ball and goes down the court quickly.

She is saying to fight day in an day out. She isn't trying to just motivate you to just grow one day, but to keep growing despite the set backs and back conditions.

Restating that she is calling for growth in this darkness, which gives her poem almost a begging sort of tone.

I think it's important that she wants people to go over the things trying to hold them down and not go through it.

Shes saying that although it's going to be hard to gather up courage because of how many things are stacked against you, you must continue to fight.

It's very hard to get resources to grow strength at all.

Also being under constant Surveillance by higher ups that you can't hear but know that they are there.

Another hard place to grow because you are paralyzed and are unable to.

Very unforgiving and confusing times.

Meaning that it is almost impossible to grow a garden when it is always dark, like it is hard to grow strength during this hard time.

She's calling for strength even during dark times. Saying "dark" could mean many things like mystery, fear, weakened.

He is fine without knowing about death, but is begging to know why god made him black and to showcase his talents when black people were still very oppressed.

At first he is described as good, but now his actions are horrible and his thoughts are unclear.

God cares very little about what the humans think.

Catechism is instructions for Christians, so he's basically saying that the only person that doesn't have to follow those instructions, is god himself.

No human can truly understand god's intentions and reasons, which ties back to the title because Cullen is kind of questioning said intentions.

Sisyphus was sentenced to push a boulder uphill forever because he cheated death twice (Another figure in Greek mythology). According to this text, god has a reason for death and cheating it is punishable. The video we watched talked about how Cullen was inspired by some white writers as well, and he has brought up two greek myths which originated from Europe.

Tantalus was a greek figure that was tortured with never ending hunger and thirst, who was teased by the sight of fruit everyday.

God is willing to explain why things are the way they are and why people must die if he chooses to lower himself to us.

He says this to make sure the reader knows that he is not disrespecting god.

This really stood out to me because it really shows the aftermath of slavery and all these years of oppression that still hasn't ended. Feeling as though you have to apologize for something that you were a victim of, shows how this oppression still affects them.

Since black people have drawn artistic inspiration from their past, they are having some sort of pride because of it.

He believes that you can't put truth and right above beauty and you can't put beauty above truth and right.

He admits that he doesn't know everything, which makes him more trustworthy because he didn't try and pretend to know everything about art.

the past (slavery and oppression) splendid future (creating)

They're different because their life is all in front of them and they have better opportunities than the people before them to make their lives beautiful.

These questions are strictly rhetorical and are implying that only you as an individual can right this wrong.

It's important for black people to find art, so their life can be joyful after gaining the same rights as everyone else.

Since beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, he shares his personal experience of what HE thinks is beautiful, While making the audience think about how they describe beauty.

It may be haunting because of the connection with music and slavery in the South.

Materialistic things aren't truly important and won't make you truly happy like self discovery.

They want to thrive in America and not just live.

He wants them to think beyond just being a citizen and really find their own identity because that strengthens their culture.

Using the word "simply" shows that he thinks they should want to be more than just regular citizens.

They have fought to be Americans, but are still disgusted by it's ideals, so it's very conflicting.

Progression in Art is important, even though it may not help civil rights. It's still important for black culture.

When you get into art, your mind is expanded.

Maybe art could be a possible way for black people to help get them through oppression.

He is basically saying that art has become unimportant because of other more important issues like human rights. This also foreshadows his rebuttal to this particular argument.

He is self-aware about the sensitivity of his subject, but still wants to talk about it because he finds it necessary to talk about.