Maya Angelou (1978)
Race prejudice is not only a shadow
Over the colored--it is a shadow over
all of us, and the shadow is darkest
over those who feel it least and allow
its evil effects to go on.
Pearl S. Buck
William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
Sonnet 18 (1609)
Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer' s Day?
Shall I compare thee to a summer' s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
and summer' s lease hath all too short a date.
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed;
and every fair from fair sometimes declines,
By chance, or nature' s changing course, untrimmed.
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st;
Nor shall death brag thou wand' rest in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow' st.
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
Silvia Chacón Guevara A51486
ReplyDeleteThe first thing that came to my mind when I saw the video was: OMG she is so old! I guess she really lived when Martin Luther King gave his speech "I have a dream" and is really good that she managed to see Obama as president because that dream has come true: blacks now have power and have been aknowlodged by the whites.
Regarding the poem, I noticed some differences from the written one and the spoken one. I wonder if she changed some things when she was reading it. Eventhough, it's a nice poem. I like it because it not only shows how whites pretend blacks to behave; it can be used to show just how every minority is supposed to be seen by the majority.
pd: I love Alan Rickman (and I love even more his British accent), so when I saw the video of sonnet 130 it didn't sound as funny as when we read it in Literature and Women last week.
Definitely it is not the same to read a Poem in isolation or to read it with background information. Of course, the issue of racism against black people is not a new topic;however, sometimes we forget who have been the protagonists of this victory through history against pain, injustice and slavery.
ReplyDelete"I am the dream and the hope of the slave
I rise"
..makes me think in the black soldiers that were drafted into the military during the World War I and the World War II. They were treated with the worst human treatment..and also racism affected them not only in the military but also they had to deal with it after their return to home.. face to face with social stereotypes that hurt..
"I am the dream and the hope of the slave
I rise"
Pablo Orozco A74675
ReplyDeleteAbout the video,I think that there are always things that make mankind evolve,and we are still evolving,learning and growing up in this changing world. Racism has always been part of human history and there's no doubt it will always be,but not in a bad way. The matter that it's always going to be part of human history resides in its "common sense",its reason capacity to recognize that it is wrong, and that the only way to keep growing is taking down those bounds and barriers our own prejudices built up.
About the poem, I really loved the way the author seemed to enjoy it when she was saying it,because it shows how she's proud of what she is and that there's nothing that can make her fall without rising again. I also think that it can be applied to our daily life because even when black people is still facing some problems, we face some too.Obviously, only a person who suffers from discrimination can really tell or know how terrible it is, and there's nothing worse than excluding someone who is different just because she or he "is different"(give me a break,we are all the same). Additionally, society improved since black people became part of it; for example, the best athletes are black people, and now a black man was elected president to fix what a white one screwed, so it demonstrates that not only people are evolving,but also that we can do everything together.There's no person who doesn't need somebody else's help, because it's our nature, so united we never shall fall.Losers try to put us down, and that's what the poet is telling us,but she(as most of us do) really enjoy when she can rise again and show them that she could do it, and that she's never going to give up!
I would really like to have such strenght and determination... I would'n mind to go through trouble if at the end I would raise like she says. It makes me feel kind of guilty, having such a nice life and still be afraid. While she laughs in the face of difficulties, sometimes we just hide. She is not only strong but free like the air she describes, free to dance, and to be herself... I want to be like that! I think I will never feel as proud as she looks in the video watching how her dreams (and the dreams of many others) come true. She is part of the stairway that many important people in history have built to take human race higher, to make it better. I am glad that her beautiful and powerful poem is now more important than ever before, I am glad she now can fill her mouth with proud, I am glad she had the courage to give others hope. All her attitude is printed in her poem, that is why it is so intense and passionate. I really like to see her so happy and proud! She deserves it, as well as all the other people who did something instead of feeling pity for themselves.
ReplyDeleteDani
I just love that poem!!!I heard it a thousand of times and every single time I got boosebumps!It's just amazing the way she recites it!!
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning she reminds us that we are all the same, we all as human kind have moments of sarrow and of happiness in our lives. But still, the way she refers to her race is so powerful and full of energy. Many people have sometimes felt pity about black ones because of the injustice they have suffered through time, but what about their strength, and determination of keep fighting no matter how many times others have rejected them?? It's just amazing! For me that's the point of the poem, to remind us how strong human kind can be!
Then in the fist video she shows how proud she is of her race and that finally after years of slavery one black person was elected president in the USA, which demonstrates that an african African American has the same capacity to govern a country as a white person.
Cecilia Chan
ReplyDeleteI think that she is so happy in the interwiew because nowadays a black person is running such a country like US, and she as black person is very proud of that. Because of her age, she seems really old, so when she was young maybe she lived a slavery live or her parents or family did. She is regreted of what those years of slavery makes her feel. Nowadays, that racism has decreased, and the world has noted that black people are like white people, that they have the same habilities to do somethings, like tiger woods, he is black and he was number one in golf; I think that she feels that finally she is treated like human being.
At the same time, she is showing the world that she is a good poet like a white person. The most important thing is that she is really proud of her race and she feels that she is living in a better and more respectful world. She is not ashamed at all of being black!!
Graciela Avila
ReplyDeleteA70738
The poem it`s just amazing! The way in which she described an entire story of slavery and pain in one poem but still managed to give a twist on the entire thing and turn it into hope and faith its just incredible! I loved the poem not only for the message that she is giving to black people but for the message she is giving to us all! It doesn`t matter what the color of your skin is, whats the size of your body or even your heigth! All of us have been in that situation of frustation and darkness! We had all been put down and step all over! but still we have to learn to stand up against all odds and against the rest of the people who wants to see us down and say: You know what? It doesn`t matter what you do or what you say I`ll RISE! Not only the poem but her words about Obama and how long has she waited for a moment like this to come really expresses her sense of strength and determination. I loved her poems! It has become in one of my favorite! She is definitly a very talented poet because she managed to make her story our own and make us feel something so powerfull that for one minute that takes to read the poem your entire perspective about life changes!
What is it for us to fight for if everything were given up on us? If we had not had fallen, for sure we would not have either stood up. Tears streamed down our faces, but not tears of mourning but tears of triumph, for our souls stronger had never been before. We fight back with our hearts and not with our swords; in the deepest of this cut flesh, blackened by the sun, bloods run faster than ever. Our eyes sad or gloomy could seem, but beware of the disdained light of mine that you, in your darkness of proud, will never see.
ReplyDeleteListening to Dr. Angelou reciting the poem was just soothing and invigorating at the same time. Her poem exudes pride and an adamant spirit in spite of all the rejection and hurdles that society has for her as part of a minority that has struggled to attain the rights that were denied to all of its members. The passion that she puts into reciting the poem is so moving that it shows us how different reading a poem is from listening to someone saying it from their heart. She also speaks with the voice of a powerful woman who rejoices in her sensuality and her strength, even when she acknowledges that it scares people away, she challenges them for fearing her vitality. For no matter how many times she is rejected, she goes on, no matter how hard she is stepped on, she gets back up, which is something anyone from a minority or group suffering from discrimination in any way can look up to and admire.
ReplyDeleteIt is incredible what those black poeple in the video has made through the history not only of the United Satate but also through the history of the world , especially in a country where they suffer a lot from racism. Barack Obama ia a man that demonstrates that the aptitude to govern a country like the United States is not something about skin color, he demonstrates that black people can stand out even more than a white people. Angelous´s poem is a beautiful example of pride, sometimes I whish white people were pride of their race the same way black people are of theirs.I believe from the deep of my heart that these people deserve evarything what they have achieved and more, and we must admire them for that.
ReplyDeleteI listened to the poem and some words came to my mind: pride, calmness, hope, strength, will to live, determination... Could we be able to endure that kind of humiliation and survive? I do not know but I really hope so.
ReplyDeleteMaria Sanchez A75973
ReplyDeleteWhat I Liked the most about the whole activity is the way when you read and listen to the poem as the same time and see all the changes that the author makes in the poem while reciting it is amazing!!! You can feel the way she feels and all the changes are made in the exact moment giving to the poem a whole new meaning.
The poem itself is so powerful... the way that no matter what people can do to harm you... you can always find strength in yourself and raise again and again. I guess that one of the most powerful meaning in the poem is not let that anybody hurt you and if they do, do not let them see you defeated. I really like the poem and once again the way she recites the poem is just breathtaking!!
A40179
ReplyDeleteI still don´t know if I´m ever going to understand the joy Maya Angelou was experiencing when she was reciting her poem. It is true we all have faced and will face darkness at some point, but the type of darkness that racism and slavery represents goes beyond my understanding, why? maybe because I have never been under it in such an extremely way african american have for years. I can sense her joy but I´m not able to explain exactly its meaning...
The "good" thing about all these years of racism is to find out that there´s still hope, that there is enough strength of character to rise.
The poem is wonderful, few words portray a cruel reality and at the same time everything it takes to keep on dreaming, screaming, hoping, standing up... everything it takes to keep living.
I hope we all rise to start building up the world we all deserved.
Enrique A23091
ReplyDeleteTo think that you are superior just because of the color of your skin is a clear sign of ignorance and an act of violence to all human beings. Likewise, discriminate others just because of their social status, gender, religion or nationality is equally retrograde. Even though, most of us say that we are not racists, we enjoy laughing at sexist and nasty jokes about Nicaraguans. It is exactly the same situation because we are legitimizing a stereotyped that corrodes our identity. Costa Ricans should learn to be more tolerant since we live in a wonderful place where people from different nations live.
Regarding the poem, it was great not just because of the theme masterfully developed by the poet but for her amazing way of tell it. When you hear her voice you felt how she is talking from her soul, telling that world that
“Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.”
It goes beyond our earthly experience, beyond our superfluous vanities.
It talks about being yourself, without prejudices; it talks about transcending the exhausting reality of this decaying sphere. It talks about being alive and be proud of being a human being.
I really like the when she says “You may shoot me with your words,
ReplyDeleteYou may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.” That part shows me her determination and that she wants to fight against racism, she fights wit her words, she tells us the story of slavery... with her poem she shows us that every one of us experiment racism, not because of the color of the skin, but because of our differences. But she says “But still, like air, I'll rise” even though our problems we should overcome them and demonstrate that we are just as all: human beings.
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
“We're coloured people, and we live in a tainted place
ReplyDeleteWe're coloured people, and they call us the human race
We've got a history so full of mistakes
And we are coloured people who depend on a Holy Grace
A piece of canvas is only the beginning for
It takes on character with every loving stroke
This thing of beauty is the passion of an Artist's heart
By God's design, we are a skin kaleidoscope”
DC Talk,Colored People.
Racism is a world of darkness, that's the only color we should fear, there are no colors on skin or differences on us, we just have gaps done by the hate toward one onother on this world....