Friday, June 20, 2014

"Maya Angelou Rises Up with Heart" by Khoury H.

Following is a seventh-grader's first literary analysis essay wherein he analyzes and discusses a poem by the recently departed Maya Angelou. 

The poem "Still I rise" by Maya Angelou begins with "You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lies..." and ends with "I rise, I rise, I rise." These two lines along with the title suggest the author's message, which is that you can rise up from other people's hatred.

In order to get her message across, the author uses rhythm and repetition. She uses rhythm and repetition when she says at the end "I rise, I rise, I rise." When I think about this rhythm and repetition, I think about the heartbeat. The heart beats only where you are alive. Maya Angelou could be repeating the rhythmic phrase "I rise, I rise, I rise" to echo her heartbeat as she lives despite challenges.

Maya Angelou also uses the second person point of view when she talks to the reader directly and says "you." I think she uses the second person point of view because she wants the reader to feel ashamed so they don't repeat history. The author also wants the speaker to be in opposition to the reader so she, the author, who is also the speaker, stands out even more as someone who rises up.

Additionally, the author uses contrasting diction that represents someone putting Maya down and then Maya rising up. For example, in the ninth stanza, she writes, "night" and "daybreak" and "terror" and "wondrously," which are opposites demonstrating oppression and then transcendence.

In conclusion, Maya Angelou's poem "Still I rise" is a poem whose message is that you can rise up despite other people's hatred. The author uses rhythm and repetition, the second person point of view and contrasting diction to convey her message.


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