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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

A Poem to Share

Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906)



Sympathy

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!

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The above poem was published in Lyrics of the Hearthside by Dodd, Mead and Company in 1899.
It was this poem that inspired the title to Maya Angelou's autobiography I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings.

Sourced HERE

10 comments:

  1. I might have come across the title but didn't know where it came from. Thanks for posting this. :)

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  2. I taught high school English for 37 years and always loved teaching poets like Dunbar. He was truly gifted. Thanks for this posting; it brought back some memories of the classroom.

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  3. So beautiful and filled with longing....love Maya Angelou's book too.

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  4. Thank you for reminding me of this poignant poem.

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  5. Wow, so vivid and I agree poignant!
    What a remarkable talent~ I'm curious about his other poems.
    Thank you for sharing him with us~

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  6. So wonderfully sad, so wistful, so yearning, and ever so beautiful.

    Kay, Alberta, Canada
    An Unfittie’s Guide to Adventurous Travel

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  7. yes, oh thank you for posting this poem today, Kerry.

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  8. Kerry , this was a real treat. I have always enjoyed Dunbar. This is especially poignant.

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  9. Thanks for introducing me to a heartfelt poem I'd not read before. ♥

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