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Analysis Of Shame By Dick Gregory

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Everyone has, or will, experience shame and a feeling of strong dislike or hate. In the autobiography “Shame” by Dick Gregory, he relates back to his childhood when he first experienced these feelings. Imagine being as young as seven and going through an experience that would leave you ashamed of everything about yourself. Imagine being this young, and being left feeling less than others and believing you always need to prove yourself for others so you can break away from the shame. In Gregory’s autobiography he uses diction, language, syntax, and imagery in order to create a frustrated tone to express what being put to shame felt like. Writers, such as Dick Gregory, use imagery to help set the tone of their story or get their points across. In “Shame” the language used to …show more content…

In “Shame” we can see clear embarrassment and frustration. Gregory was angered over not having a dad, having a teacher who put him to shame, living in poverty, being black, being who he was, and frustrated most of all with the fact people felt sorry for him and wanted to help through pity towards him. Another example of a time he felt frustration with himself in his life was when he stated, “ I was pretty sick about that. I waited too long to help another man.” Gregory expressed that he believed society needs to help those in need, but there of course is a disadvantage due to the ways it might make people feel. He had said earlier in the story he was ashamed to wear the mackinaw as every one was the same and it indicated you were on relief; he was also embarrassed to be seen running out to the relief truck for food. In conclusion, Dick Gregory wrote to remind and show us true shame. Gregory provided a good example of how you can use literary technique to improve your writings in a way the audience can relate and enjoy. He used his own style and was able to implement diction, imagery, and syntax to create a tone of

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