Dunbar's 'Wear The Mask'

In We Wear the Mask, the author’s purpose is to push the reader to feel something about the way things were in his perspective.

Masks      A mask is a covering worn on the face or something that disguises or conceals oneself. All the characters in Shakespeare's Hamlet hide behind masks to cover up who they really are, which contridictes a main idea, expressed by the fool, Old Polonius, "To thine ownself be true" (Polonius

Dunbar’s work begins with the use of an anaphora. In the title and first line he writes, “We wear the mask” (Dunbar, 1896), this statement is

Sherman Alexie’s novel, Reservation Blues, successfully captures the essence of pain and struggle that was so evident in both the slavery of Africans and the eradication of Native Americans, and integrates the power of blues music in order to bring the reader a breathtaking story. Alexie develops a strong, interconnected web of characters sharing common misfortune. Whether it is in Coyote Spring’s inability to succeed, Robert Johnson’s painstaking attempt to leave his guitar over the years, alcoholism within the character’s families, discrimination, or any other aspect of Native American life, Sherman Alexie is able to combine the characteristics of Blues music with the oppressed Native American culture present in his novel Reservation Blues.

In today’s society masks are used depending on the specific social group we interact with. Most people tend to have various masks or personalities when they are with specific people; such as with their friends, family, and during work. In Kenneth Gergen’s essay “In Defense of Masks,” he claims that people are not apt to find a specific mask to which they can be true too however, having various masks could be important because it allows people to adapt to various social groups . I disagree with Gergen’s claim and counter argue that utilizing only one specific mask with whomever we interact with will help anyone live a genuine lifestyle. There are various categories that fall into masks; for instance, makeup, clothing, religion, and appearance. Many individuals acquire masks because they seek approval from others or simply because they are mimicking someone. Once someone adapts to having multiple masks, it is difficult to figure out our true identity due to the variety of personalities that are being portrayed.

Mr. Frank shows courage, compassion, and sacrifice. This book shares the story of a young girl and her family hiding during world war 2. She goes into hiding in a small annex for two years with another family and two other men. This book shares the story from Anne’s point of view. it’s a great book to read and tells you how they survived for 2 years.

black child could do that well on his own. Wilson would also often find notes on his desk reading "Nigger go home." At home, his family had to endure racial slurs in the mostly white Hazelwood area of Pittsburgh.

It is a natural tendency for humans to often hide their true selves. On the inside, they are the person they feel they should be; on the outside, they hide their true selves from society because they fear disapproval and ridicule of others, or society dictates who and what

self. He is deliberately misleading and often indirect as if to hide beneath his words, coming across as oblique and delicate at the same time. This further stresses the idea of the mask, being concealing and elusive, in many ways. This particular piece of work is unequaled, not only to the literary world, but the author himself. Paul Laurence Dunbar's other poems are written in a specific dialect, brought on by his African-American descent. One example comes from an earlier It is both a veil to shield the emotions of bearer of the mask and personal denial of specific

This idea of being a part of a society, that has deemed its African American citizens as “Separate but equal.” Dunbar does his best to explain this role to his readers referring to himself not only as a part as the African American community, but also as a scholar in the African American community. As someone that has become privileged enough to write, read, and publish individual works. Which have allowed him to gain respect from a number of other authors. Dunbar tries to explain what is necessary to hold this position in his society. How one must wear a “mask,” this of hidden pain that must never be shown in order to maintain the “dream” that the world has created. He gives his audience an idea of the sacrifice many people were required to make, in order to maintain the appearance they created and continue to be respected in

In the poem We Wear the Mask, author Paul Laurence Dunbar uses figurative language in many instances. Personification, one of the figures of speech most used by Dunbar, can be seen continuously throughout his poem. For instance, in the first line of the first stanza, Dunbar uses personification when he writes “We wear the mask that grins and lies” because the mask is portraying human-like qualities. The mask represents how the subjects of the poem, African Americans, display a physical image that completely differs from what they really feel mentally and emotionally. Despite the misery and despair that they underwent during the time in which this poem was written, which was in the late 1800’s, African Americans demonstrated an image of nothing

In this story “Online Identity” the narrator wants to fit in. This articles says. “Online identity offers potential social benefits to those with physical and sensory disabilities, because others cannot see them.” “The kind of mask one chooses reveals at least something about the person who chooses

Throughout the video you see different groups of friends, and in each group of friends they wore the same mask and no mask was different. To me this means to fit in with a certain group you have to wear the same mask, and if you don't wear the same mask

Contrary to his belief, the narrator does not have a mask on. Although the narrator believes in a misconception that he is ‘playing the role of a boy,' when in fact, what he considers to be a mask is simply his body and his male appearance. The narrator is never in a real need to ‘play a role' because nobody really actively tries to find out who he really is. His peers, based on his appearance, all assume that he shares the same sexual orientation as they do.

Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “We Wear the Mask,” by many people, is viewed as a portrayal of the “mask” that all people wear to hide their inner self. The itself is “written from within black experience,” as stated by Peter Revell (On “We Wear the Mask”). Dunbar was an African American Writer in the time of Jim Crowe laws, so his story can ultimately be seen as a “mask” worn by his people during this time to hide not only their suffering, but the shame of their past as well. Gossie Hudson describes the poem as a way of Dunbar “revealing himself by the way he concealed himself” (On, “We Wear the Mask”).He revealed that, though he wore a mask of pride and happiness, he was full of sorrow.