who cooked rotten animals lung heart feet tail borsht & tortillas dreaming of the pure vegetable kingdom
Ginsberg uses such dichotomous descriptions in order to emphasise this impossibility of achieving the American dream and how the system is rigged throughout society. People are desperate for the ideals but are only left the dregs to try and substantiate themselves. It is so jarring yet powerful.
with dreams, with drugs, with waking nightmares, alcohol and cock and endless balls
I think this line encapsulates the imagery that Ginsberg is creating and showing the fall of humanity in the poem. He continuously repeats these descriptions of addiction to drugs and sex, resulting in losing any touch with reality.
Moloch! Moloch!
The repetition and exclamation of Moloch throughout the end of the poem reminds me of political rhetoric, particularly that of Trump. The name and word takes on a new power and meaning if it is said enough, it becomes unstoppable
little bottle on a shelf in the library,
I wondered what the metaphor surrounding the bottle in the library would be and I feel it is commenting on the way that black culture is commodified and stolen by white people. It is something that they admire and take to own, but that they can control and imprisoned.
all glass — But inside
This shoes the fragility of the facade of palatability in which white people view Black culture. The man has to be dressed in this costume in order to garner the attention of the crowd, because if he was dressed alternatively, as the poet notes, the crowd would not have the same reaction. The soul of black culture cannot be contained by something as weak as glass. The short line of "But Inside", highlights this infinite power and beauty the man and Black culture possesses and expresses
And slow
I love the enjambement here which really emphasises the dancing of this man. It subverts even the poetic voice, who did not expect him to be able to dance so beautifuly
little one, I cannot bear the pain
In the second stanza of this poem, it seems the poetic voice turns to a metaphorical child, a child of the future. The phrase "bear the pain" emphases this, connected to the pain of bearing a child. There is this supremely difficult conflict between the joys of motherhood and the horrors of racism that each black mother has to endure when having children
You!
I love that the poet never reveals who this person is, how they know them, or even the gender of this loving partner. The exclamations of passion and love literally are embodied in the punctuation she uses and the short, quick pace of the poem
It stifles me
No longer is the futile seam a source of anguish and almost annoyance towards the protagonist but actually it has become the very entity that inhibits the action she knows she wants to do
But—I must sit and sew.
This sharp break in the metre and rhythm of the poem highlights these powerful words. Whilst all this horror and war goes on she is confined to the domestic sphere and expected to complete such a menial task
hymns keep company
The power of song has been noted in the Harlem Renaissance as such powerful method of conveying feeling and expressing Black culture.
I want
The repetition of "I want" at the beginning of every third line continues to emphasise the active desire of the poet. There is a power and strength in demanding and saying aloud those that you wish to have
Not still with lethargy and sloth,
I like this distinction made about the stillness of the metaphorical jars. Its not still as in immobile and stagnant but more as in rooted and present
An’ turned into a cracker, Wid a sheriff’s star.
The entire poem has been culminating to this climactic point, that Hell truly is something that was also being caused on Earth. These biblical allusions, paralleling the Devil with white police officers, emphasis the dangers and fear that surround police brutality against Black people. Even as an angel Slim is terrified and runs away as fast he can from the potential harm the devil can do when he has "a sheriff's star"
You sang
This sudden juxtaposition from the repetition of beginning each line with "They", which has built up the amount of trauma and horror that has been caused by the unknown perpetrator (though it is clear that the poem is referencing slavery), shows the power and fortitude of the Black people coming together in spite of this adversity. "They" can cause all this pain but they cannot stop the singing.
“She jes’ catch hold of us
I love this line, it really captivates Ma Rainey, as someone who has even taken her biggest fans by surprise. Her beautiful songs and voice has captured something of their lives. They finally see themselves in her and in her music.
O Blues!
The poem is littered with these apostrophes of the emotional 'O Blues!'. It is able to convey the power and beauty of the music and the critical connection it has to Black people. Hughes is literally calling out, and almost personifying Blues music, to give it the reverence it deserves.
I, too, am America.
From the beginning of the poem where the characters is only allowed to 'sing America' by the end they have truly accepted their identity as Americans. They have regained and demanded the space that they are deserved and entitled too. The powerful pronoun of 'I' that is frequently used in the poem emphasise this active role the speaker has in the poem
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
I love the imagery surrounding water and rivers throughout this poem. Hughes is showing the depth of his experience and the history/trauma that black people have endured throughout history. It is equally beautiful and empowering, as he gains strength from the hurt black people have faced in society.
The great social gain in this is the releasing of our talented group from the arid fields of controversy and debate to the productive fields of creative expression.
I think Locke comes to this powerful and beautiful conclusion, that it is not just necessary for there to be equality and Black communities be involved and celebrated in society, but this is of creative and spiritual benefit of everybody. This diversity brings America more talent, change and beaut, developing society with hopes in the future for it to flourish
American social creed and the American social practice forces upon the Negro the taking of the moral advantage that is his
This is totally accurate within the law and social practice also. Even with the 13th Amendment that made all people equal regardless of race, Jim Crow laws would come to effect to segregate and diminish Black communities. Even when there is some semblance of equality within social thought, the practice of this on a societal level does not match
it will call for less charity but more justice; less help, but infinitely closer understanding.
I think this is the most important aspect of trying to heal wounds left by the history of racism and slavery. The work is not done when the clear, outlandish racist laws are removed. It takes much more discussion and change for racism to be truly eradicated, and less overt experience of racism cannot be just seen as an afterthought. As Locke says it needs more 'understanding' not help, which comes through cooperation and listening to Black voices
The white people did not buy it. Most of the colored people who did read Cane hate it. They are afraid of it
Hughes powerfully indicates this double edged sword for Black poets, in which they have to appease white audiences and even their own community who fear any stereotypes or stories that could change the precarious social position African-Americans face at this time. The poet is discouraged from noting their own experience and when allowed to do so, cautioned to not damage any social view. It is a near impossible task on two fronts, which is what makes the mountain both tall and rocky
“I would like to be a white poet”
The suppression of Black voices has resulted in the normalisation and expectation that whiteness is the default within society and within literary voices. This silencing of minority voices still takes place today
they accept what beauty is their own without question
By virtue of being at the bottom of the social hierarchy, and thus away from expectation and status, Hughes shows that these people will be the true poets. They will tell of their experience unapologetically which will actually express aspects of Black culture untainted by society's obsession with whiteness
Spring and All
This poem connects with Picasso's 'Landscape with Two Trees', with Williams showing the true underbelly of nature, one that is not usually given the artists attention. But I think it shows the beauty within these places that are deemed ugly and unappealing. The phrase 'Spring And All', I think describes Williams' panning away from conventional views and discussion topics surrounding nature, choosing to write from a different perspective.
contagious hospital
Williams juxtaposes any expectations the reader may have had to the start of a poem that has 'Spring' in the title. From the outset, he describes infected nature that is not attractive or engaging. Instead of the beauty and power of the natural world, it shows a deadened, unrestricted, real view of the way that our outside world can become if it is not cared for.
Here lies, and none mourn him
Immediately I interpreted this to be the voice of an angry partner, happy at the death of their failed loved one. I think with some of the imagery surrounding the character of the 'Man' in the poem and the desperate fall of him, I still read it in this tone that is filled with irony and unspoken scorn. It reminds me of Beyoncé's visual album Lemonade and the poetry by Warsan Shire the precedes all the songs (though in this verse, exhibiting the same words, the roles are flipped with the disdain partner being the one who has died)
what power has brought you low
The enjambement here is so good! The poet extends the poetic line from one to the other so the word 'low' literally is placed under the rest of the line. This emphasises the true depths of the man's life.
cut down to spring no more
Spring has a double meaning here. Either that the man is physically unable to bring himself back up or we can understand it as the season of Spring emphasising how he was killed in his early life
What worked for them might work for you.
The vagueness of the poem, giving alternative ways to try and gain fame or happiness or wealth, emphasises the numerous possibility that the 'American Dream' provides to people. There is always this double edge sword here of there is a thousand ways to get to the top but at what cost.
Assorted characters of death and blight Mixed ready to begin the morning right,
The spider, moth and flower are all white to create this appearance of innocence and beauty. Yet, when really thinking about the terrible nature of insects feasting on each other, a holy trinity of horror, Frost's message that God's design may not be as magnificent as once thought comes through. Secularisation of society was becoming much more prominent throughout the world
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
This directly correlates with our understanding of the binaries in the previous works, from science vs the arts and interior and exterior.
“Well, Mr. Flood, if you insist, I might. “Only a very little, Mr. Flood–
After reading the title of the poem and then going through the lines it is clear that it is supposed to be ironic, with Mr Flood's party for one. It becomes extremely sad and interesting as we watch him be his own company, and could perhaps see the poem being read in two voices.
alnage of the years.
I expect the cloth is a reference to the way tapestries were a powerful way to record history. Poets and Kings weave the tapestry of time and it's interesting that this is tinged with sadness. Again this is a burden for people not a blessing, is that due to the horrors of the world, or just the horror of the passing of time itself?
are but the clerks of Time, Tiering the same dull webs of discontent,
Poets and kings reminds me of Plato's thought that only when philosophers become kings will there be true peace. Poets become the beacons of understanding society and the past, left with the burden of deciding what is worth in their lives to write about. They become our markers of time, conveying the zeitgeist of each era.
sold at auction on the public square
Always when literature begins to be censored and free speech can tend to go soon after. The intolerance of the towns people to either new ideas, or just pure ignorance is very sad to see. This creates the somber and futile tone of the poem.
tick, tick, tick, Tick, tick, tick
Masters uses repetition to great effect here, even having it spill over from the first line to the second. 'Tick' is also onomatopoeic, is this trying to convey a ticking clock, or perhaps the sound of seeds in a pod?
It takes life to love Life.
This line really says that you only know what you had as soon as it is gone. The experience of life is overlooked when you are living within it but as soon as its over, as Lucinda talks from beyond the grave, its beauty and sanctity becomes clear.
Why did God make me an outcast and a stranger in mine own house? The shades of the prison-house closed round about us al
House is use as metaphor for the United States, but we could maybe see it as a haunted house? Black people are seen as inferior within the country, trapping them at the bottom of this social hierarchy - figuratively they are lost, imprisoned souls
The double-aimed struggle of the black artisan—on the one hand to escape white contempt for a nation of mere hewers of wood and drawers of water, and on the other hand to plough and nail and dig for a poverty-stricken horde
Throughout the piece DuBois continuously uses these binaries to convey the struggles that black people face. This 'double-consciousness' means there is never any security either socially or mentally. It reminds me of the dichotomy between the Dynamo and Virgin, the direct contrast between science and the arts
and unscalable to sons of night who must plod darkly on in resignation, or beat unavailing palms against the stone, or steadily, half hopelessly, watch the streak of blue above.
This sounds extremely similar to Sisyphus, describing a purgatorial, unending, cyclical existence. I especially identify with the phrase 'half hopelessly', as Sisyphus always has that one shred of optimism that the rock may stay up on this hill one time, or like Adams who continuously seeks out the answer/knowledge that always seems to escape him
Then he took me in his arms and called me a blessed little goose, and said he would go down to the cellar, if I wished, and have it whitewashed into the bargain.
There is this infantilisation of the protagonist by the husband in order to reinforce the rigid power dynamic and gender hierarchy that leaves her totally reliant on him for all satisfaction within the domestic domain.
There is a DELICIOUS garden! I never saw such a garden—large and shady, full of box-bordered paths, and lined with long grape-covered arbors with seats under them.
This definitely highlights some sense of irony within the text, where the protaganist is SO enamoured with the house to match and live up to the socialised conception of the perfect, domesticated house wife. It is her madness and obsession with the house, and eventually the wall paper that emphasises the futility and pain she feels within her gender role.
Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good.
It shows the lack of mental/emotional stimulation is the true cause of the protagonist's insanity. She is told that because she is unwell, due to her lack of inactivity, that she must then be bedridden. It is medicalising the social inequality of women and the normative gender roles that imprison women into the home.
Neither of them felt goddesses as power–only as reflected emotion, human expression, beauty, purity, taste, scarcely even as sympathy.
Adams plays with this idea of gender within his theory surrounding the force, as he seems to state that there is this feminine aspect that he has tapped into, which has been instrumental for him. Whereas St Gaudens uses the horse, masculine, animalistic symbol, Adam feels the female energy of the Virgin/Venus. He shows how goddesses power have been mistakenly overlooked.
These assumptions, hidden in the depths of dusty libraries, have been astounding, but commonly unconscious and childlike
This highlights the human condition, attempting to attribute meaning to all things in order to encapsulate and understand our own existence, and not delve into our own insignificance. We all remain "childlike" because we are unable to have the true adult understanding that we are merely an advance species on a random planet.
The planet itself seemed less impressive, in its old-fashioned, deliberate, annual or daily revolution, than this huge wheel,
Throughout the chapter there is a tension between the powerful technology and its real insignificance. Although, Adams compares such human innovation to the Earth, calling the modern dynamo's speed and power superior, highlighting its technological prowess, he simultaneously implies the smallness of its existence. Humanity is desperate for control so heightens our creations, when in fact the dynamo will not last as longs the Earth itself.
“Bow Down” come “Rise Up,” Come they Lion
This connotes religious imagery, with the act of prayer and worship, deifying the being of 'They Lion'. Levine uses a direct verb of 'Come' to call out to it and bring it forth
Out of black bean and wet slate bread
It is interesting that, though these lines imply the struggles of the working class with imagery of hard labour, there is this almost post-apocalyptic atmosphere. Coupled with the poems cryptic message, it almost seems to be a message from the future, showing the destruction humanity is headed for.
“Come home, Come home!”
It is interesting that from the beginning of the poem there is this imagery of coming out, with the word 'out' opening every line of the first stanza. Here, by the middle of the poem, there seems to be a shift with the direct speech of 'earth' telling people to 'Come Home'. It gives a purpose of this movement and a destination, complementing the imagery of moving out of something into the arms of nature perhaps.