Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SYMPATHY (2), by PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SYMPATHY (2), by             Poem Explanation         Poet's Biography
First Line: I know what the caged bird feels, alas!
Last Line: I know why the caged bird sings!
Subject(s): African Americans; Birdcages; Freedom; Sympathy; Negroes; American Blacks; Liberty; Empathy


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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