Sympathy by Paul Laurence Dunbar
I KNOW what the caged bird feels, alas!
When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass,
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals —
I know what the caged bird feels!
I know why the caged bird beats his wing
Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting —
I know why he beats his wing! I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,—
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart's deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings —
I know why the caged bird sings!
When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass,
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals —
I know what the caged bird feels!
I know why the caged bird beats his wing
Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting —
I know why he beats his wing! I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,—
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart's deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings —
I know why the caged bird sings!
- Poet:
- › Background information: the song about
- › Previewing the poem would it was bout a old man who met someone who felt bad for him
- › Subject of poem:being locked up
- › Repeated words and phrases:i know what the caged bird feels
- › Structure of the poem:abaabcc
- › Rhyme Scheme:
- › What I liked about the poem:nothing its sad
- › What the poet is saying:he knows how it feels to be locked up
- › The mood of the poem:sad
- › Why does he repeat the phrase “I know why the caged bird”?
Thoughts and feelings
- › “I know what the caged bird feels, alas”
- › “Till its blood is red on the cruel bars”
- › “But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings”
- › When I read this poem, I felt: sad nd i feel bad that this is how some jails are
- › I felt this because:i have seen life on both sides
- › How does the speaker feel about slavery: its wrong
- › I know this because: i have been there
Paraphrase these lines
- “When the first bird sings and the first bud opes”
- “I know why the caged bird beats his wing/ Till its blood is red on the cruel bars”
- “It is not a carol of joy or glee./ But a prayer that he sends from his heart’s deep core.”
Alliteration - when the wind stirs soft through the springing grass
Simile - the river flows like a stream of glass
Metaphor - Caged bird = slaves or African Americans who are not FREE
Rhyme - Alas, grass and glass
Imagery - first bird sings (hearing) and the first bud opes (sight), and the faint perfume from (smell)
Repetition - I Know what the caged bird feels