On the Pulse of Morning

"On the Pulse of Morning" is a poem by African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou that she
read at the first inauguration of President Bill Clintonon January 20, 1993. With her public recitation,
Angelou became the second poet in history to read a poem at a presidential inauguration, and the
first African American and woman. (Robert Frost was the first inaugural poet, at the 1961 inauguration
of John F. Kennedy.) Angelou's audio recording of the poem won the 1994 Grammy Award in the
"Best Spoken Word" category, resulting in more fame and recognition for her previous works, and
broadening her appeal.
The poem's themes are change, inclusion, responsibility, and role of both the President and the
citizenry in establishing economic security. Its symbols, references to contemporary issues, and
personification of nature has inspired critics to compare "On the Pulse of Morning" with Frost's
inaugural poem and with Clinton's inaugural address. It has been called Angelou's "autobiographical
poem",[1] and has received mixed reviews. The popular press praised Clinton's choice of Angelou as
inaugural poet, and her "representiveness" of the American people and its President. Critic Mary Jane
Lupton said that "Angelou's ultimate greatness will be attributed" to the poem, and that Angelou's
"theatrical" performance of it, using skills she learned as an actor and speaker, marked a return to the
African-American oral tradition of speakers such as Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King,
Jr. and Malcolm X.[2]Poetry critics, despite praising Angelou's recitation and performance, gave
mostly negative reviews of the poem.

Background[edit]
When Angelou wrote and recited "On the Pulse of Morning", she was already well known as a writer
and poet. She had written five of the seven of her series of autobiographies, including the first and
most highly acclaimed, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969). Although she was best known for
her autobiographies, she was primarily known as a poet rather than an autobiographer. [2] Early in her
writing career she began alternating the publication of an autobiography and a volume of
poetry.[3] Her first volume of poetry Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Diiie, published in 1971
shortly after Caged Bird, became a best-seller and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.[4] As scholar
Marcia Ann Gillespie writes, Angelou had "fallen in love with poetry" [5] during her early childhood
in Stamps, Arkansas. After her rape at the age of eight, which she depicted in Caged Bird, Angelou
memorized and studied great works of literature, including poetry. According to Caged Bird, her friend
Mrs. Flowers encouraged her to recite them, which helped bring her out her self-imposed period of
muteness caused by her trauma.[6]
Angelou was the first poet to read an inaugural poem since Robert Frost read his poem "The Gift
Outright" at President John F. Kennedy's inauguration in 1961, and the first Black and
woman.[2][a] When it was announced that Angelou would read one of her poems at Clinton's
inauguration, many in the popular press compared her role as inaugural poet with that of Frost's,
especially what critic Zofia Burr called their "representativeness", or their ability to speak for and to
the American people. The press also pointed to the nation's social progress that a Black woman
would "stand in the place of a white man" at his inauguration, and praised Angelou's involvement as
the Clinton administration's "gesture of inclusion".[8]
Angelou told her friend Oprah Winfrey that the call requesting her to write and recite the poem came
from television producer Harry Thomason, who organized the inauguration, shortly after Clinton's
election. Even though she suspected that Clinton made the request because "he understood that I am
the kind of person who really does bring people together",[9] Angelou admitted feeling overwhelmed,
and even requested that the audiences attending her speaking engagements pray for her. [9]
She followed her same "writing ritual"[10] that she had followed for years and used in writing all of her
books and poetry: she rented a hotel room, closeted herself there from the early morning to the
afternoon, and wrote on legal pads.[11][12] After deciding upon the theme "America", she wrote down
everything she could think of about the country, which she then "pushed and squeezed into a poetic
form".[12] Angelou recited the poem on January 20, 1993.[13]

Themes[edit]
"On the Pulse of Morning" shared many of the themes in President Clinton's inaugural address, which
he gave immediately before Angelou read her poem, including change, responsibility, and the
President's and the citizenry's role in establishing economic security. The symbols in Angelou's poem
(the tree, the river, and the morning, for example) paralleled many of the same symbols Clinton used
in his speech, and helped to enhance and expand Clinton's images. [14] Clinton's address and the
poem, according to Hagen, both emphasized unity despite the diversity of American culture. [12] "On
the Pulse of Morning" attempted to convey many of the goals of Clinton's new administration. [2]
..."On the Pulse of Morning" is an autobiographical poem, one that emerges from her conflicts as an
American; her experiences as traveler; her achievements in public speaking and acting; and her
wisdom, gleaned from years of self-exploration".
African-American literature scholar Mary Jane Lupton[1]
Burr compared Angelou's poem with Frost's, something she claimed the poetry critics who gave "On
the Pulse of Morning" negative reviews did not do. Angelou "rewrote" Frost's poem, from the
perspective of personified nature that appeared in both poems. Frost praised American colonization,
but Angelou attacked it. The cost of the creation of America was abstract and ambiguous in Frost's
poem, but the personified Tree in Angelou's poem signified the cultures in America that paid a
significant cost to create it.[15] Both Frost and Angelou called for a "break with the past",[16] but Frost
wanted to relive it and Angelou wanted to confront its mistakes. Burr also compared Angelou's poem
with Audre Lorde's poem "For Each of You", which has similar themes of looking towards the
future,[16] as well as with Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" and Langston Hughes' "The Negro Speaks
of Rivers".[17] According to Hagen, the poem contains a recurring theme in many of Angelou's other
poems and autobiographies, that "we are more alike than unalike".[12]

"On the Pulse of Morning" was full of contemporary references, like toxic waste and pollution.
Angelou's poem was influenced by the African-American oral tradition of spirituals, by poets
like...

Analysis of 'On the Pulse of Morning' by Maya Angelou

Angelou has been figured a national celebrity since the reading of her poem, ' On the Pulse of
Morning', at President Clinton's inaugural in 1993. Maya's writings have a way of embracing people
and successfully state her thoughts and emotions. "Pulse" is a call for hope and opportunity part of
our history. Maya Angelou's poem ' On the Pulse of Morning' relates to diversity, change over time,
and equality. When analyzing her poem, we came across stanzas that relate to these topics.

Her poem has successfully portrayed a sense of diversity. Many lines in different stanzas are related
to diversity. Stanza four and five, states, "The singing River,and the wise Rock. So say the Asian,
the Hispanic, the Jew, the African, the Native American, the Sioux, the Catholic, the Muslim, the
French , the Greek, the Irish, the Rabbi, the Sheik, the Gay, the Straight, the Preacher, the
privileged, the Homeless, the Teacher. They hear. They all hear the speaking of the tree." They are
united by nature, but different due to their culture. In stanza six a lot about diversity has been
acknowledged. The people who once helped Maya, do not anymore. It also says that we arrived
from the Indians.
In the course of history, elements of society have changed. Examples through Maya's work are,
"The dinosaur, who left dried tokens Of their sojourn here... Is lost in the gloom of dust and ages.
But today, the Rock cries out to us, clearly, forcefully, Come, you may stand upon my Back and
face your distant destiny." (stanza 1). The dinosaur, as you well know are now extinct. They have
left their "dried tokens" or their fossils here when they were once here. They left them here for us to
find. For the different groups to find. The dinosaurs were "lost in the dust..." and it was hard for
people to find, but now over the years, the dinosaurs fossils have been found. Also the slave black
African Americans have come from the ancient homeland of Africa. The slaves were once hear and
now the United States passed a law that slavery was to be abolished. Over time people places and
all things have changed, for both good and bad.

Equality, is an important concern in the world today. "Women, chidren, men, Take it into the palms
of your hands..." (stanza 8) Our society can be a loving one with equality for men, women, blacks,
and whites. Rich or poor we all have the same opportunities in our country. No matter when in
history we all appear. People think that people that are not like them come from other planets, but
we are all members of this planet. No matter how strange we appear to be to others. "History,
despite its wrenching pain, Cannot be unlived, but if faced With courage, need not to be lived
again. "(stanza 7) We learn from the past. The discrimination should not happen again, nor the
inequality.

Maya was successful in relating her poem to diversity, change over time, and equality. She was a
very talented writer, and this poem clearly is a contribution to today's Civil Rights Movement.

Poem Summary
Lines: 1-8
In these opening lines, Angelou sets the scene and tone of the poem. She places three objects
before the reader: “A Rock, A River, A Tree,” but doesn’t give a specific location. These three
elemental pieces seem removed from any landscape, and, from the capitalization of each name, it
has been speculated that Angelou intends each to stand for itself in a type of grandeur. The poem
goes on to explain that these objects are “hosts to species long since departed,” still surviving though
their “tenants” are long extinct, further implying they carry a certain “historical wisdom.” From here the
poet lists a few of those creatures known only from their “dried tokens” dug up and reassembled in
museums. Their “sojourn,” or temporary stay here, ended in a “hastening doom,” which they had no
way of predicting or preventing. “Any broad alarm” of their extinction is now dwarfed by the mountain
of history between their time and the present.
If lines 7 and 8 are read aloud, it’s possible to hear the rich sounds Angelou crafts into the poem. The
repetition of long vowel sounds and the internal rhyme of “Doom / is lost in the gloom” perhaps reflect
the somber mood Angelou is setting while describing these extinct creatures.
Lines: 9-13
Line 9 marks a shift in time, a move from looking back at history to the present. The “Rock” from the
first stanza now has a voice, which it is using to cry out “clearly, forcefully.” It offers the reader an
invitation to climb up and get a better perspective of where America might be heading in a journey
toward a “distant destiny.” But like a teacher the Rock warns against seeking any shelter or hiding
place behind it in the darkness. “Shadows” have long been the places that cause fear, where bad
things lurk under beds or behind closet doors. They are also, literally, the absence of light: within
shadows it is difficult to see clearly. For the religious, light is divine; for philosophers it is knowledge.
Believing this, divinity and knowledge are absorbed by the stone but absent in its shadow.
Lines: 14-18
In the third stanza, the Rock continues its lesson, addressing the reader directly as “You, created only
a little lower than / the angels.” Here the poet seems to close the gap between man and heaven, the
stone again raising the reader. This Rock has seen dinosaur come and go, and now humans, who, it
notices, “have crouched too long in / the bruising darkness / face down in ignorance.” Angelou’s verb
choice “bruising” in line 16 may describe how a shadow casts a blue-black mark across a face,
reminding the reader of conflict and its dark wounds. The speaker suggests humans have been
hiding, not looking up toward the light, afraid of what they might learn.
Lines: 19-23
Angelou ties the third and fourth stanzas together with the line “Your mouth spilling words / Armed for
slaughter.” She may have broken the line here to force the reader to pause in the white space
between, to guess “what kind of words?” before finishing the sentence. The harsh words “spilling”
from humans’ mouths seem to be pouring out of our control, “armed for slaughter,” ready for a fight
with anyone listening. But the Rock warns again, summarizing “stand upon me; / But do not hide your
face.” People may wear many “faces” — student, laborer, wife, father — that are different, but they all
provide an identity and a sense of individuality.
Lines: 24-26
With the beginning of a new section, Angelou introduces a new speaker, the “River,” which, in a song,
invites the reader to come closer and “rest here by [her] side.” To get to the River, the reader had to
cross “the wall of the world,” which may be some real geographic feature, or just representative of a
boundary or obstacle on humankind’s journey.
Lines: 27-34
The River compares each person in America to “a bordered country / perpetually under siege,”
relating the troubles of an entire nation back to its million voices. The River explains what the country
has done wrong: gone to war for money, polluted waters with machines and factories, ignored the
needy. Angelou describes the toxic waters as a “current of debris upon [the River’s] breast,” giving
nature gender and perhaps reminding that it is “Mother Nature” who is being destroyed. There is a
place for Americans to rest on her shore, but only if they “study war no more.”
Lines: 35-40
If people come “clad in peace,” the River offers them a song: a gift the Creator gave before the tallest
tree ever broke soil as a single shoot. “I and the / Tree and the Rock were one” once, the River
explains, in a time before recorded history, in a time before man began drawing boundaries and
daring others to cross these lines.
“Cynicism” is the belief that people are motivated by selfishness, and the “bloody sear” across their
brows may be a reminder of the mark Cain was cursed to wear for his selfish act — the murder of his
brother. “When you yet knew you still knew nothing” perhaps means a humbler or even wiser time;
Plato said “True wisdom is knowing we know nothing.”
Lines: 41-49
Using a list — or a litany — to create a wide panoramic scene of diverse peoples, Angelou introduces
the reader to a new speaker, the Tree. It seems everyone is here to listen, regardless of culture,
occupation, which gender with which they fall in love, or to which God they pray. This diverse list
works to welcome any and all to the foot of the Tree, much like the engraved invitation at the base of
the Statue of Liberty, “Bring me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses.”
Lines: 50-54
In this short stanza the poet repeats again the invitation to “plant yourself beside the River,” the entire
mass of humankind welcome to hear the song. The Tree has many symbolic meanings, not the least
of which is the concept of extended family — or “Family Tree.” A tree also has roots that stretch into
the very earth. In these symbols Angelou is reminding the reader of their place both within their family
(blood relations and other) and within nature.
Lines: 55-63
Calling Americans “descendants of passed-/ On traveler” the River asks the reader to consider both
their own past and the past of the country as a whole. There is a reminder that all Americans are
immigrants, that they are “just passing through.” Angelou follows this up by directly addressing the
Native Americans, those who lived in this country centuries before Europeans ever arrived: the
Pawnee tribe, Apache, Seneca; the people who first named the rivers and trees and mountains.
These people who once rested with the River were “forced on bloody feet” by the visitors in their land
to work and mine.
Lines: 64-69
In these lines Angelou advances the poem through another list of diverse people, the rhythm of the
names keeping beat, Arabs and Eskimos sharing company in the same breath. She begins the list
with people who came to this country to escape religious persecution or find a better life for their
family, and concludes with those who were forcibly uprooted and “bought / Sold, stolen, arriving on a
nightmare / Praying for a dream.” This “dream” may be a reference, or allusion (a reference within a
literary work to another work), to Martin Luther King’s famous “I Have a Dream” sermon, which
became an anthem for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.
Lines: 70-79
In the second section of the poem, the stanzas become longer, building in imagery and force. In lines
70-74 the poet returns to the comforting refrain “root yourselves beside me.” The three voices —
Rock, River, Tree — may be a single “I,” the whole of nature speaking. Back in lines 55-56 Angelou
writes “each of you / has been paid for,” and a similar statement is made in line 74: “your passages
have been paid.” Who’s paid for these passages? What have America’s ancestors done to insure the
journey? Regardless of origin, the Rock/Tree/River asks humankind to “lift up [our] faces / For this
bright morning dawning for you.” These lines mirror the second stanza, where Angelou offers images
of shadow and light. This is also the first indication to the poem’s title, perhaps working to create an
overall theme or mood of dawning hope. Yet Angelou also cautions that the hardship that has led to
this new day should never be forgotten: “wrenching pain, / Cannot be unlived.” She warns that
America must learn from its dark past so that when new problems arise they can be overcome; “if
faced / With courage, [history] need not be lived again.”
Lines: 80-83
Following this revelatory stanza, where the three voices merge in a call to a bright new morning, this
shorter stanza closes the entire second section on a quiet, consoling note. The lines become short —
most less than four words — the poet perhaps wishing to slow the pace before the complete stop of
the section break. For the third time Angelou invokes the refrain “lift up your eyes.” The dream the
slaves prayed for might be alive again if a new generation “will study war no more” and instead “give
birth again” to a peaceful world.
Lines: 84-92
Beginning the third section with a single addressing line, Angelou maintains the encouraging,
powerful tone of the Rock/River/Tree, yet the speaker is not specifically identified. She asks America
to “Sculpt [your private need] into / The image of your most public self.” This is an elusive line in its
generalization, perhaps telling instead of showing, but if it is broken down into its parts, a central
tension reveals itself. The line asks the reader to sculpt or transform their most private needs into
something that can be shared with others, the personal made public. Angelou doesn’t develop further
what “private needs” may be, but most critics have speculated a reference to the most basic human
freedoms. In this sense these lines are a call to action, an encouragement to emphasize the
importance of human rights. Whereas before Americans are asked to lift up their eyes, line 87 asks
the same of their hearts, the center of all life and emotion. There are “chances / For a new beginning”
if people can divorce themselves from fear and unchain themselves from their violent ways. “Yoked”
refers to the wooden harness which keeps an ox secured to the plow it drags, a heavy bar across the
animal’s shoulders and fastened with straps around its body.
Lines: 93-101
The sections are shorter and more frequent as Angelou nears the end of the poem. In the fourth
section she returns to the locale of the second stanza, perched on the back of the land looking out
toward the future. “The horizon leans forward,” providing room for “new steps.” This metaphor of
taking steps may mean literally to walk forward as well as take “steps” or actions to ensure that past
mistakes are not repeated. The speaker now reveals itself as the voice of America, the “Country” and
all the trees, rivers, rocks, people, and animals of which it is composed. “Midas” in line 100 refers to
the fabled king who could turn any substance to gold with his touch, including, he regretfully
discovered, those he loved, leaving him with a castle filled with lifeless riches. A mendicant is a
beggar; like the privileged standing next to the homeless before the Tree in line 47, all are equal in
the larger “pulse of this fine day.”
Lines: 102-110
In this closing section the title of the poem reveals its meaning, the theme of a new dawn for
humankind coupled with the pulse that courses through America’s common veins. The lists of various
peoples earlier in the poem now become the simple image of family: when people look up and out at
their future, they are looking at their “sister’s eyes” and their “brother’s face.” Whereas most of the
poem asks the reader to rest and listen to the wise teacher, these last lines implore speech. A
“simple” lesson, Angelou refrains certain lines as many as four times throughout the poem, the tone
taking on an almost lulling, song-like effect. The first step to this new day is a simple but meaningful
action. Look up and out and say “Good Morning.

On the Pulse of Morning Analysis by Maya Angelou

This poem analysis is divided into four parts – context, rhyme scheme and rhetorical devices, themes,
and deeper meanings – all of which are essential to a complete and well-rounded understanding of
this profound poem.

Context: This poem explanation depends critically on the context in which the poem was written. It
was written by Maya Angelou on the occasion of the first inauguration of American president Bill
Clinton on 20thJanuary, 1993. Since this was the start of a new term and a new presidency for
America, Angelou presents it as a new dawn. The themes she develops through ‘On the Pulse of
Morning’ (which shall be discussed a little later) are also the same themes Clinton spoke about in his
speech. This poem made Angelou the first African-American, and the first woman, to speak at a
presidential inauguration, and thus cemented her literary status as one of the greats of twentieth
century American poetry.
Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Devices: No consistent rhyme scheme is followed throughout the
poem. Only the sixteenth stanza contains four pairs of rhymed pairs. The rest of the poem seems to
be written in blank verse to capture the flow of Angelou’s many thoughts on this historic day. The last
stanza also ends with very short lines, which end the poem with an incantatory effect to show easy it
really is to engender hope amongst your countrymen.

The primary rhetorical device used here is personification, in which a non-living object is accorded
human characteristics. In ‘On the Pulse of Morning’, the Rock, the Tree, and the River are all
personified. This is evident in the way the poem gives voice to their reminiscences about an earlier
time of peace and harmony, and their invitation to human beings to bring back such a time in the
present with their support and encouragement.

Themes: This poem analysis will show the themes developed by Angelou in this poem on a stanza-
by-stanza basis for ease of comprehension. The theme of the unforgettable quality of historical
events is seen in stanzas 1 (where dinosaurs are shown to have left a mark on the earth’s surface
that cannot be removed), 19 and 20 (in which the history of the obliteration of the Native American
tribes by colonial settlers, and that of slavery, which is so important for Angelou herself, are outlined),
and 23 (in which Angelou asserts how important it is to remember the struggles of the past if one is to
survive in the present).

The theme of unity in diversity is seen in stanzas 13 (in which Angelou says that people of all beliefs
have gathered to listen to the ancient wisdom that the Tree embodies), and 24 (in which Angelou
asserts that not only the men, but also the women and children must take the responsibility of
changing the degraded state of America into one of which they can be proud), and the two lines
between stanzas 27 and 28 (in which the Rock, the Tree, and the River assert that they will provide
support to rich and poor, and young and old alike).

The theme of the greed that can destroy human civilization is hinted at in stanzas 8 (where the River
says that the factories that humans have built for profit have dumped toxic waste upon her shores),
16 (in which Angelou speaks of the gold prospectors who exploited the labour of the Native
Americans), and 28 (where Angelou asserts that all human beings are descended from the same
source, and are thus brothers and sisters to each other).

The theme of alienation is evident in stanzas 7 (where the River describes every man of being a
country with closed borders that does not allow for peaceful existence, and collaboration amongst
themselves), and 11 (where the River speaks about a time of innocence in which, as Plato said,
man’s greatest wisdom lay in knowing that he knows nothing and which has now changed into a time
in which man has gained knowledge, and with it pride, to develop a sense of scepticism towards the
simple truths of peace and harmony).

Deeper Meanings: This poem explanation would be incomplete without going into some very specific
allusions that Angelou makes in the context of American history. At multiple places in the poem,
Angelou speaks of the many different races that came to America as slaves and as immigrants. This
can be seen as a reference to the melting pot theory of ethnic relations. The positive view with which
this theory developed said that persons of all ethnicities have made up the great American nation,
and that there is space for them all in America. However, a negative view of this theory also exists,
which says that all ethnic groups in America have been ‘melted’ into a single, homogeneous identity
which does not allow for their particular cultural differences to emerge. Angelou advocates the
acknowledgement of all such diverse cultural traditions, along with the coming together of the ethnic
groups in transforming America into the dream their ancestors had wanted it to be.

This poem also makes reference to the Middle Passage, the slaves’ crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in
ships from Africa to America, during the course of which thousands and thousands of them died
before ever arriving in America. This is the passage with which they paid for their descendants to
become citizens of America. This is a very important event in African-American history, and one that
is not overlooked by writers like Angelou and her contemporaries such as Toni Morrison and Alice
Walker.

Such deeper meanings have enriched the poem and are especially suited for the context in which it
was written, in the 90s when America was determined to foster good relations between all its various
ethnic communities.
Maya Angelou is perhaps one of the most extraordinary personalities of the twentieth century. A
dancer, an actress, an author, a screenwriter, a poet, she has multitudinously earned the title of “the
fist black woman”. Just to name a few, she was the first African-American woman to have a non-
fiction best-seller with her autobiographic novel I know why the Caged Bird Sings which came out in
1969. In 1972 she became the first black woman to have her screenplay produced, when her
drama Georgia was made into a movie. However, the first “first” goes back to the WWII years, when
she was the first black female cable car conductor. Her latest “first” and conceivably her most
commendable one, yet, was the recitation of her poem “On the Pulse of Morning” at President Bill
Clinton’s inauguration in 1993. The audio version of this extraordinary, highly inspirational and utterly
eloquent poem/speech won (very much justified[2]) Grammy Award for the best spoken word album.

The pulse of the poem is set in the very first line of the first strophe: A Rock, A River, A Tree, by the
iambic trimester—the closest to the rhythm of the heart. Everything even the indefinite articles are
capitalized to emphasize their importance and the personification of the subsequent line: hosts to
species long since departed. Such anthropomorphism is carried on, when the Rock cries out, the
Rivers sings and the Tree speaks. The first two lines of the poem concurrently epitomize the
rhetorical device of apposition—the second element serves as an explanation of the first.[3] The
whole first strophe can be interpreted as ethos, an attempt to establish credibility as if uttering: “Look,
we have been here since before dinosaurs and mastodons, listen, to what we have to say to you!”

The appeal to ethics is followed by pathos in the second stanza as the Rock cries out to us, clearly,
forcefully … reiterating two verses down in anaphora: the Rock cries out to us today… as the Rock
urges the humans to rise to their intended position—only a little lower than the angels, and stop
hiding and crouching face down in ignorance. The Rock is willing to serve the Human as a pedestal—
you may stand upon my back… you may stand upon me (anaphora)—as the Creator intended for the
human to be the crown of his creation. The song of the River appeals to logic; the attempts of profit
maximization of the businesses has led to exploitation and pollution, it is time to try something new,
not war, but peace, not against nature, but with it. The Tree, on the other hand, uses more
pathos: bought, sold, stolen, arriving on the nightmare praying for a dream. It invites the listener to
come to the riverside: plant yourself beside the River…root yourselves beside me. In this case the
author employs the technique of chremamorphism-- giving characteristics of an object to a person[4].
Through the personification of natural objects and bestowing humans with qualities of a plant the
author accentuates the inseparability of mankind, nature and their creator.

However, mankind still needs to give birth…to the dream of unity. So far humans have built the wall of
the world and have bordered [their] countries, they have led armed struggles for profit…--desperate
for gain, starving for gold, bought, sold, stolen, arriving on the nightmare praying for a dream. It
seems noteworthy that the author never uses collective terms like humans, people or mankind. Maya
Angelou either uses the direct “you” or very specific categorisations of the seventh stanza (the Asian,
the Hispanic, the Jew et.c, by the way this is the only stanza which is written in rhymes: Jew—Sioux,
Greek—Sheik, Preacher--Teacher) or the metaphor each of you, descendant of some passed on
traveller. This line evokes an image of a prodigious son, whose Father is patiently waiting for him to
come back and plant and root himself back at home. Home in this particular case is the Rock, the
River, the Tree. Notice, the Rock is not defined by its color, the River is given no name and the Tree
is not classified either. The ancient Chinese teaching of Feng Shui states that the energy chi which
lives in all things manifests itself in five different expressions which are also called the Feng Shui
elements. These are Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal.[5] It seems as though Maya Angelou
intentionally leaves out the elements of Fire and Metal out of her poem. These two elements have
been abused by mankind for the purpose of destruction. It is time to restore the balance. It is time to
come home.

One could argue that it was the original task of a human—Adam’s job—to give names to all things. To
give names and define their purpose, yes. But the humans got too caught up in name-calling and
forgot their perhaps most important purpose—the “molding of the dream”. The beginning of any
creation is logos—word, image, or a dream. Full of pathos Maya Angelo urges the listener to give
birth again to the dream. Using the device of a metaphor she persuadeswomen, children, men, [to]
take it into the palms of your hands, mod it into the shape of your most private need, Sculpt it into the
image of your most public self. This is a deeply philosophical paragraph. The author is using very
powerful images/metaphors to stress the importance of what is being said, for example, “to give birth
to the dream”. As already mentioned, a dream or an idea is the very beginning of creation, be it a
creation of a work of art or conceptualisation of ones own destiny, the image precedes its
materialization. The birth is on one hand the very beginning of something and on the other hand it is
the ultimate act of creation in terms of materialization. From this perspective the phrase “give birth to
the dream” could be considered a pleonasm as if saying “let us go to the beginning of the origin”[6]. In
this particular case such pleonasm does not sound redundant, but rather provides the necessary
graveness to the point. And then of course there are “your most private need” and “your most public
self” which are indispensable to the poem. The “public self” is relatively easy: it is the best version of
ourselves, our super-ego if you will. But what is the most private need? It can only be speculated that
the need that Maya Angelou is talking about is the need for freedom, not in terms of human rights or
civil freedoms, but the essential need to be free from expectations and prejudices, free from burdens
of the past and free from fear. In fact the word courage is used twice in the poem, History, despite its
wrenching pain Cannot be unlived, but if faced With courage, need not be lived again. This is what
Maya Angelou said about the virtue of courage: "Courage is the most important of all virtues, because
without courage, you cannot practice any of the other virtues consistently."[7]

The last four stanzas contain a lot of non consecutive anaphors, such as Lift up you eyes,… lift up
your hearts; You may have the courage,… you may have the grace. No less to Midas than the
mendicant, no less to you now than the mastodon then. To look up and out and upon me, the Rock,
the River the Tree, your country… to look up and out and into your sister’s eyes, and into your
brother’s face, your country. The latter constitutes the climax, the high point of the poem, because
now the listener, who was still all the way down on the ground in the beginning of the poem, has now
risen to the proper for a human heights (only a little lower than the angels) and can look upon the
country which is made up of the Rock, the River and the Tree (the natural endowment) as well as the
brothers and sisters (the people that populate the country) with a sense of freedom and equality and
face the new morning, a new beginning with hope and optimism. When Maya Angelo finished, her
dream was born in the hearts of all who listened.