In both poems, “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou and “I, Too” by Langston Hughes, the theme of race limiting one’s freedoms is displayed. However, the themes are treated very differently by each author. “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou explains how it feels to see others enjoying freedoms that you cannot. It compares an enraged bird trapped in a cage to another bird soaring through the countryside freely, enjoying the luxuries of freedom. “I, Too” the poem by Langston Hughes tells how he feels that he, also, is American and deserves the same rights as any other man, no matter his skin color. Not only are the themes presented in a touching way, but imagery is also used throughout both poems very adequately.
Imagery is an important part in each of the
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In “Caged Bird” Maya Angelou writes, “A free bird leaps on the back of the wind and floats downstream...and he names the sky his own.” This shows how the author feels that the free persons are claiming the world their own, while the restrained race watches and can do nothing due to their ‘cage.’ Another example is when Angelou writes, “But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams, his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream” which demonstrates how she feels that without the freedoms others enjoy she is not able to pursue her dreams and goals but instead is ignored. And lastly, in “Caged Bird” the writer says “For the caged bird sings of freedom,” which explains how badly these people want their freedom. It shows that they long for the same rights others don’t appreciate enough. Next from “I, Too” Langston Hughes states, “They send me to eat in the kitchen when company comes but I laugh, and eat well and grow strong.” This shows how the themes are treated diversely. Langston describes how he is going to overcome and rise up and gain his freedoms while Maya describes her longing for these rights. Hughes also writes, “I, too, am America.” and “I too, sing America.” which explain how he feels that he is apart of the country and no different than any other man. He believes that he deserves the same rights, just as any other American
Maya Angelou talks about a caged bird and a free bird in her poem “Caged Bird.” When Maya Angelou talks about a caged bird and a free bird I think she is describing people, like the caged bird is a person who is stuck by others opinions about him/her and
Angelou was born in Missouri in 1928. She spent most of her childhood in Stamps, Arkansas, pre Civil Rights Movement with her grandmother and her older brother. Angelou is most known for writing the poem Caged Bird. In the first stanza about the caged bird, Angelou declares that the bird, “can seldom see through/ his bars of rage/ his wings are clipped and/ his feet are tied/ so he opens his throat to sing”(Caged Bird). Angelou uses the bird as a metaphor for oppressed African Americans during this time period; the bird is held back by a barrier, just like African Americans were held back by unjust laws, a corrupt legal system, and their white peers who saw them as inferior. Similar to the bird, Angelou felt held back by others, but she did not let the “bars of rage” hold her back from her potential so, like the bird, she “opened her throat to sing” and used her voice to protest for herself and those who could not advocate for themselves.
During the 1960s segregation was at its peak. In the poem titled “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and in the poem “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou, both authors describe caged birds longing for freedom and free birds. Both of these poems relate to Hunter-Gault's story of being discriminated against University of Georgia. The exposition of her story is that the university is doing everything in their power to keep her out. She also encounters many conflicts while earning her right to attend their school. Discrimination has taken place all throughout US history but in Hunter-Gault's case she rewrote history by being the first student of color to be excepted to an all-white school.
Deep in the forest of Frederick Douglass’s autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, the caged bird sings on. The singing slaves in Douglass’s narrative are the caged birds of Maya Angelou’s famous poem, filling the air around them with desire: desire for a freedom so far out of reach—for “things unknown but longed for still.”
Maya Angelou is a leader by example, she sets the standard by her actions and the stories she tells teaches the audience a lesson. Majority of her work is to inform us of the past and she wants us to learn from her experiences in life; she is a life teacher. The purpose of this poem was to inform us of the history of our country. The poem is titled “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” and her purpose of writing this is to teach the reader why the caged bird sings. Maya Angelou wants to put the reader in her shoes to get the ultimate experience of racial inequality but instead by taking the role of a caged bird or a free bird.
In the poem I Too written in 1945 the overall theme focused by Langston was discrimination towards the African American people in the United States. We understand that the speaker in the poem is black from the first line where it states “I am the darker brother” providing an imagery for the readers. Then in the poem it says “They send me to eat in the kitchen when company comes” setting the tone of the poem, meaning that the speaker is unimportant person or referring him to a slave. The reason so, is because back in the day’s slaves had to eat in the kitchen of white slave owners. The setting of the first stanza of I Too
The first element our writers used to express their message of wanting to be free is form. The narrator for ‘The Caged Bird” feels alone and wishes to be able to snatch the chains that keep her tied down. Also, in the poem “Sympathy” by Dunbar as well an in “The Caged Bird” both authors used a bird to symbolize the captivity and aspiration for freedom. Both poets wrote their piece in lyric form because of obvious reasons. A lyric poem is defined as a poem that expresses personal and emotional feelings. Writing poems with this form shows the amount of deep emotion that the narrator feels toward this work. In addition, both authors wrote their poems in iambic pentameter to make the poem sound like a natural flow of speech to really show the deep feelings the poets are feeling.
Each of the poems relies heavily on imagery to convey their respective messages. Often throughout each of the poems, the imagery is that of people. However, each uses similar imagery to very different, yet effective ways to explore the same
Angelou’s poem “I Know Why the Cages Bird Sings” expresses the idea that freedom is a natural state and knowledge of this fact cannot be rid of by any amount of oppression, limitation or confinement from different opportunities. The poem contrasts a
The poems “ I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou are both poems that speak on the issues of the mistreatment of African Americans, and how these challenges were created simply by the color of one’s skin and overcome. While the poems “Mother To Son” and “ Dreams” by Langston Hughes refer to the hopes of African Americans for a better standard of living, and the consequences of departing from these dreams of bettering themselves. This comparison of these four poems is important because all four aim to better society for African Americans, and inform the population struggles that they maybe be able to relate, and provide them with the inspiration to keep pushing forward. These poems explain why the desire for equality was so important to African americans at this time, and what they had to go through to get it. I believe that these poems are all used as methods of expression, information, as well as rebellion against the racial in injustice that was suffered for so long.
“I, Too” and “Caged Bird”, two amazing poems by two amazing authors, both share a theme of hope for freedom. In “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou, she writes about two birds. One being able to fly freely and another stuck in a cage unable to do what it wants. Even with his wings clipped and feet tied, the caged bird still sings of freedom. “I, Too” by Langston Hughes is very similar. In this poem a boy, the darker brother, is always sent to the kitchen to eat when company arrives. Even though he is constantly being hidden, the boy knows that by doing so he will grow strong, become beautiful and they will be ashamed for sending him away. Obviously, the free bird is blessed with freedom but the caged bird and the boy both can only sing of it.
The poem “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou tells the story of two birds: one bird has the luxury of freedom and the second bird lives its life caged and maltreated by an unknown tyrant. Maya Angelou wrote this poem during the Civil Rights Era, the period when black activists in the 1950’s and 1960’s fought for desegregation of African Americans. This poem parallels the oppression that African Americans were fighting during this time period. In “Caged Bird”, Angelou builds a strong contrast that shows the historical context of discrimination and segregation through the use of mood, symbolism, and theme.
and so this could be the reason for the content of her poems. I think
However, in the poem “Caged Bird” Maya Angelou characterizes the free and caged bird as, one bird symbolizing imprisonment and limitations while the other symbolizes freedom, which further develops the theme of inequality. The line “And dares to claim the sky” shows how unaware the free bird is and further develops the idea of its freedom. This piece of evidence shows how unaware the free bird is by exaggerating the extent of its freedom compared to the caged bird. In