Essay about The Poet by Paul Laurence Dunbar - 494 Words

The Poet by Paul Laurence Dunbar Before we pass on from this world it would be nice if we had left our mark, given our contribution, made our claim in the history of human civilization. Wouldnt it be wonderful to achieve such a goal? Wouldnt it be horrible to have attained that level of recognition and yet be recognized for things you deemed inferior? In the poem The Poet, Paul Laurence Dunbar expresses his remorse at having written superior Standard English literature and yet only be known and praised for his Dialect works. The first way Dunbar achieves this meaning is by his use of language. When Dunbar is talking about standard English poetry he speaks of life, serenely sweet/ With, now and then, a deeper tone (Dunbar†¦show more content†¦He continues to use romantic almost even melodramatic language to bring to mind images of earlier times that were better than the dreary world of his day. In the last lines of the poem the language changes and expresses grief over the fact that the general public only recognizes him for his Dialect works. Dunbar writes But ah, the world, it turned to praise/ A jingle in a broken tongue (Dunbar 7-8). Here he is mocking the Dialect tradition, as he doesnt consider it to be poetry. He refers to it as a jingle, which causes the reader to think of advertisements and selling out. We know that he was talking about the Dialect tradition by his use of the words broken tongue. By calling Dialect tradition a broken tongue, Dunbar is referring to his own feelings that the whites attempt at capturing the African-Americans speech by Dialect tradition is a poor, if not incorrect, representation. Even though not many blacks in the day thought the Dialect tradition illustrated their true speech, they were confined to use what they had. Because that style of writing was so popular at the time, Dunbars Dialect pieces got more notoriety than his standard English; and unfortunately the latter he felt was of higher quality. Another way Dunbar criticizes his inability to escape the brand of a Dialect poet is in the structure of the poem. About three quarters of the poem is Dunbar speaking about his standard English works.Show MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Paul Laurence Dunbar s The Elevator Boy Poet 1654 Words   |  7 Pageswas born. Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of the first African American poets to gain national recognition. (poets) Dunbar graduated high school around the time where racial discrimination was at it’s all time high, so they were not many jobs for the African American race. Due to the lack of occupation Dunbar was forced to be an elevator operator in a Dayton hotel. Although the circumstances were difficult it did not stop Dunbar from succeeding. While working as an elevator operator, Dunbar was ableRead MorePaul Laurence Dunbar1604 Words   |  7 PagesPaul Laurence Dunbar by English 102 August 4, 1995 Outline Thesis: The major accomplishments of Paul Laurence Dunbars life during 1872 to 1938 label him as being an American poet, short story writer, and novelist. I. Introduction II. American poet A. Literary English B. Dialect poet 1. Oak and Ivy 2. Majors and Minors 3. Lyrics of Lowly Life 4. Lyrics of the Hearthside 5. Sympathy III. Short story writer A. Folks from Dixie (1898) B. The Strength of GideonRead MoreAn Interpretation of Paul Laurence Dunbars Poem Sympathy and We Wear the Mask1228 Words   |  5 PagesThroughout African American history, African Americans have used poems as a way of describing the African American condition in America. One poet who was widely known for using poetry to describe the condition of African Americans in America was Paul Laurence Dunbar. Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of the most prolific poets of his time. Paul Laurence Dunbar used vivid, descriptive and symbolic language to portray images in his poetry of the senseless prejudices and racism that African Americans facedRead More ?An Interpretation of Paul Laurence Dunbar?s Poem Sympathy and We Wear the Mask?1194 Words   |  5 Pagesnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Throughout African American history, African Americans have used poems as a way of describing the African American condition in America. One poet who was widely known for using poetry to describe the condition of African Americans in America was Paul Laurence Dunbar. Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of the most prolific poets of his time. 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One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.† - Soren Kierkgaard. â€Å"Barbie Doll† by Marge Piercy and â€Å"We Wear The Mask† by Paul Laurence Dunbar are two pieces of poetry that vocalize the issues of ignorance and unrealistic social standards within society. Marge Piercy is a well-known novelist, poet, memoirist and activist. She was born on March 31st, 1936 in Detroit, Michigan into a family of labor workers, activists and creative women. In her later life, PiercyRead MoreEssay on â€Å"Sympathy† by Paul Laurence Dunbar1797 Words   |  8 PagesWilliams Honors 11 Mrs. Mosier 1 February 2012 Part 1: Exploring the Meaning of a Poem In the poem â€Å"Sympathy† by Paul Laurence Dunbar, he describes himself, trapped like a bird in a cage, symbolizing himself being trapped somewhere he has no desire to be. In the first stanza, the author describes a delightful scene with â€Å"the sun bright on the upland slopes† (Dunbar 2). 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PARAGRAPH 2: Background informationRead MoreFigurative Devices: Comparing We Wear the Mask and Theme for English B1089 Words   |  5 PagesPaul Laurence Dunbar and Langston Hughes were considered to be early black poets during the twentieth century around the period of civil right movement. â€Å"We wear the mask† and â€Å"Theme for English B† were written in 1895 and 1951 respectively. Even there is approximately 50 years gap between these two poems, the theme that these two poems address is somewhat similar. Even though Dunbar uses symbols as figurative devices while Hughes uses Irony, they both have the same goal, which is to point out theRead More The Poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar: We Wear the Mask and When Malindy Sings1725 Words   |  7 PagesPaul Laurence Dunbar was born in a northern town near Dayton, Ohio on June 27, 1872 (Brawley 12). His parents instilled in him the value of an education, and he excelled at the all-white Dayton Central High-school whe re he held the titles of class president, the president of the school literary society, and the editor of the schools newspaper (15). Dunbar was extremely well learned; he spoke and wrote in Standard English, but just as often his poetry was written in black dialect. As one of the