The free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wings
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.
But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with fearful trill
of the things unknown
but longed for still
and is tune is heard
on the distant hillfor the caged bird
sings of freedom
The free bird thinks of another breeze
an the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
Maya Angelou
I really love this poem. The alternating structure of the stanzas really establishes the contrast of freedom and beauty opposed to detainment and despair. The pattern goes from one stanza speaking about a free bird and then two stanzas about the caged bird with this being repeated twice. Contrast is such an important part of this poem and this structure makes that contrast very distinct and stark. This arrangement sets up the terrifically powerful imagery. Words in the first stanza such as “leaps”, “floats”, and “dips” express such a light, free, and happy tone but the blissful feelings that these words exude are reversed with captivity-esque words such as “narrow”, “rage”, “tied”, and “longed”. These combined strategies make a reader empathize deeply for the plight and oppression that so many black people suffered during the time of the poem’s publication.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ryan that there is a lot of powerful imagery in this poem. What really stood out to me about the poem is the repition of the third stanza and the two lines that preceed it. The fact that the repition is separated by the stanza about the free bird, like Ryan mentioned, really adds emphasis to the overall meaning of the poem because of the contrast between the free bird and the caged bird. The repeated stanza is the shortest in terms of meter which makes it read fast and stand out as important. I think that the overall meaning of the difficulty to obtain freedom is truly shown in the stanza that is repeated because of the lines "of things unknown/ but longed for still/ and his tune is heard/ on a distant hill" Those lines alone really stand out because Angelou personify's the caged bird by giving it a feeling of "longing" for something that is beyond his reach. The fact that the tune is carried far away and is heard off in the distance shows how long the process of obtaining freedom takes.
ReplyDeleteI like how you pointed out the lengths in meter. After I read what you mentioned, I looked and noticed that most of the stanzas that talk about the free bird are long opposed to the short ones talking about the caged bird. While this pattern isn't perfect or totally uninterrupted, I think it is significant nonetheless. The short and fast reading lines that you mentioned feel more constricting and fitting for the caged bird. The long lines, however, feel more rhythmic, elegant, and free flowing. All of these adjectives seem like liberties that only the free bird would be able to enjoy.
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