Brayan Barreto
FIQWS 10115_HA21 JPOE
Poetic Summary
9/19/19
Indoctrinated Poets Vs. Religious Critics
Everyone has a different manners of conveying their perspective based on what they see or experience in life. The griot is a role from West Africa storyteller based on oral tradition that describes an individual who was enslaved to keep their stories and tradition alive by the use of literature, the griot is a way for the black individual to explain their emotions, history and be heard. The use of specific diction and imagery highlights the point of each author’s view of the world by illustrating their way of thinking something which enable the reader to get an understanding of their background and thoughts.
During the middle passage many African people were exported to different places to be use for labor which was known as slavery. During those periods of time black people were brainwashed by those who control them. For instance, Lucy Terry was enslaved or captured and eventually became a free woman in 1756 which made her pursued her poems to the public. In “ Bars fight “ Lucy Terry described a massacre in 1746 at a settlement in Deerfield where Native Americans attack the colonists to seen with her own eyes, Terry purpose is to exhibit her thoughts of what’s occurring at this moment. This is important because she acts as a griot when she starts with the use of formal and scathing tone to give an analysis or sense of mind and emotions of black people. To begin with, “ Some very valiant men to slay . . . Eteazer Hawks was killed outright/ Before he had time to fight/ Before he did the Indians see/ Was shot and immediately “ ( 9-12 ). “ Here Terry explains that the colonist men were ambushed by the native Americans, which gave them less time to defend themselves so nearly all of them died. These lines stand out for me because she labels the white pale men as brave, painting them in a positive picture which is unexpected. Literature would describe a lighter skin color people in a negative way, since blacks were mistreated by those who were empowered of them, but for Terry, I believe she must have been treated respectfully due to the environment she was raised from the way she describes white individuals in her poem. Also, Terry emphasized the Native Americans as “ [A]wful creatures ” (24). The poem depicts the Native American as evil humans but Terry failed to understand that the Native American are basically trying to defend their land just like her people before they were captured. This is significant because Terry describing a conflict that arose from the native American and white individuals till the end but point out the Native American as the villain this suggest that Black American has adopted the lifestyle of white American worldview.
African American had been through pain and trained memory which means that people of color were taught to be clarify and erased their culture. Another poem that is similar to Lucy Terry ‘’ Bars Fight “ is “ Bible Defense of Slavery “ by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. Harper is an African American writer whose poem stands up for black people, making it clear to the audience that slavery is wrong and religion is being misused. However, it demonstrates that Harper has also add on to the idea that griot is a way for the black individual to explain their emotions, history, and be heard through the use of specific diction and imagery. Harper poem is about the religion of christianity and how white christains value their religion in the society and to others. Harper emphasis on “ Let holy sorrow blanch each cheek/ Pale every brow with fears/ And rocks and stones/ If ye could speak/ Ye well might melt to tears ( 5-8). ” Harper uses ‘’ holy ‘’and ‘’ pale ‘’ as something that the white christian expect from people of color demonstrate that through religion, she has been taught how to speak their language, and believe in the double consciousness in the black community, especially. when they at a church. Double consciousness is meant that black people adopted the American mainstream or social norms in order to fix in. Harper continues “ For the direst wrong by man imposed/ Sice Sodom’s fearful cry/ The word of life has been unclo’sd/ To give your god the lie ( 18-20 ). “ This emphasis Harper’s argument that religion was being used negatively. Harper questions how did white christians influence their thoughts of god words to the world and can be considered christianity when priests, pope, and teacher of the church are making scriptures. This brainwashed people which cause a caste system in society. Harper demands that this causes made people to forget their own culture due to the enforcement of the new religion they had to learn. Notes that religion was being used as a base for blinding the truth to the society that Christianity is important.
Overall, these two poems empower the white folks due to the outstanding skill and format of their communication in the poem which also highlights their imagery of viewing white people and explaining what stood out to them. African American were forced to be re-educated in order to be accepted by society because of colonist rules. Both of these poems also embody the role of griot because Terry and Harper are storytellers, lay out what they had been through in their life. I agree to a certain extent but not Terry’s use of terminology of making the colonist people be written in a good way since there were the ones who invaded Native American land. Today, we still have people who are considered powerful. For instance, those who own a certain part of a land from a foreign country are being treated well when the owner goes back for a vacation. This exhibit that the country people are ruled over the ones who originally took over them before.
Work Cited
Terry, Lucy . “ Bars fight.” 1855, pp. 1. Access on September 8-23.
Harper, Frances Ellen Watkins. “ Bible Defense of Slavery “ 1988. Access on September 8-23
