Maya Angelou was a Black American poet and Civil rights activist born in the late 1920s. She was respected as a spokesperson for black people in general and women in particular, and her works have been considered as a defence of Americas black culture. The Birds are a popular symbol in poetry, which were used as an expression of freedom by the Romantics and sometimes symbolized poetry itself. Maya Angelou deviates from the norm by not only speaking about the birds freedom but also conveying its sorrow and rage.
The caged bird is a symbol of the plight of Black American people. Its song is a reference to how slaves in the 19th century came together at Congo Square to sing as a way of remembering their heritage. The bars of rage on the caged birds cage is supposed to represent the birds blinding anger at being locked up.
The free bird is the polar opposite of its caged counterpart and serves to highlight everything the caged bird lacks. The free bird has the freedom to do what a person would believe birds enjoy. The free bird is able to do whatever it pleases, which is in sharp contrast to the caged bird which can only ever hope for freedom.
In the first stanza, Maya Angelou presents the free bird. The strong verbs used are supposed to convey how static the free bird is, and how it never seems to stay in one place. The free bird claims the sky as its own for it never had anything else to share it with. Maya Angelou uses the two narratives to create a jarring contrast. The condition of the cage bird seems even more distressing next to the joy and happiness of the free birds life.
The second stanza changes the atmosphere completely. Its main focus is on the caged bird and its pain as being confined. The cages narrow form shows how limiting its confines are as opposed to the openness of the free birds sky. The bars of rage refers to how due to its anger and pain, the caged bird can barely see past its sorrow. The clipped wings and bound feet are supposed to show how its freedom was taken away from it. The line where the bird opens his mouth to sing is a turning point in the stanza as it is the only thing that the bird can do willingly. The change to the dark mood of the cage birds narrative is made all the move jarring by the considerably lighter mood of the first stanza.
The third stanza goes deeper into the caged birds song. The bird sings with fear and apprehension for it doesnt wish to live the rest of its life in such a confined manner. The next two lines of things unknown and longed for still is a paradox, for someone cannot long for something they do not know. Here, Angelou is referring to the way someone who was captive all his life would yearn for freedom. It states that it is an innate emotion to have control over ones self even if the person in question has never had the chance to feel that way. The caged birds song reaching far enough to the distant hill is a metaphor for how calls of justice are always heard, but not always reciprocated.
In the fourth stanza, the free bird thinks of things that the caged bird has never experienced and has had the privilege to enjoy them. The fat worms mentioned could be seen as a kind of privilege along with the dawn bright lawn because they seem there just to serve the free birds desires. By naming the sky his own, the free bird states that there is no other being that is obliged to share it with. This aligns with the preconceived notion that some groups of people are born with rights over others.
In the fifth stanza, the tone shifts yet again from the free birds bright ry to the chilling narrative of the caged bird. The grave of dreams refers to all the hopes the caged bird might have had at an earlier age than now seems irrelevant or impossible at its current stage. The caged birds shadow is a personification of his powerlessness. The nightmare problem refers to a small part of the caged bird that fears it will never be released. The caged bird continues to sing despite its wavering resilience, showing that its beliefs that life will get better and will continue to persist.
The final stanza is a repeat of the third, which delves into the birds song. The bird cries out about freedom, but its never stated if its cries are ever heard by its free-flying twin.
A caged bird is in his bar of rage, whereas the free bird can claim the sky, symbolizing free Black Americans. The caged bird represents oppressed blacks in the United States.
The second stanza changes the atmosphere completely. Its primary concern is the caged bird and its suffering from confinement. The narrow shape of the cage illustrates how constricting its walls are in comparison to the sky’s openness for the free bird. The caged bird’s inability to look past its sadness is symbolized by the bars of rage, which represent its anger and pain. The purpose of the bound feet and clipped wings is to illustrate how its freedom was taken away. As the only thing the bird can do voluntarily, the line in which he opens his mouth to sing is a turning point in the stanza. The first stanza’s noticeably lighter tone makes the shift to the cage bird’s story’s dark mood all the more startling.
A symbol of the predicament of Black Americans is the caged bird. The song alludes to the 19th-century practice of slaves gathering in Congo Square to sing in remembrance of their ancestry. The angry bars on the bird’s cage are meant to symbolize the bird’s overwhelming rage at being imprisoned.
The third stanza goes deeper into the caged birds song. The bird is afraid and anxious as it sings because it does not want to spend the rest of its life in such confinement. The paradox in the following two lines about things unknown and still desired is that one cannot yearn for something they do not know. Here, Angelou alludes to the way a person who has spent their entire life in captivity would long for release. It asserts that having control over oneself is an innate emotion, even if the subject has never had the opportunity to experience it. The song of the caged bird, which can be heard all the way to the far hill, serves as a metaphor for how demands for justice are always heard but not always answered.
In the first stanza, Maya Angelou presents the free bird. The strong verbs are meant to highlight how unchanging the free bird is and how it never seems to stay still. Since it never shared the sky with anything else, the free bird claims it as its own. Maya Angelou creates a startling contrast between the two stories. In comparison to the delight and contentment of the free bird’s existence, the caged bird’s state appears even more distressing.
The caged bird is devoid of everything that the free bird possesses, and the free bird is the exact opposite of its caged counterpart. The freedom to do what one would think birds enjoy is granted to the free bird. In stark contrast to a caged bird, which can only ever hope for freedom, a free bird is free to do as it pleases.
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