Identity In Gilbert Wrenn's Poem Who Am I

“Who Am I?” is a poem condensed and modified by Gilbert Wrenn. This poem could possibly mean that the speaker is questioning his own identity. Unlike most titles, this title is not straightforward and it is also a question which means that even the speaker of this poem has a sense of unsurety. The author of this poem is quite clever because the title compels the audience to continue reading in order to answer the question: “Who Am I?”

This poem expresses the basic reality for everyone. The author uses symbolic words such as “masks” and he constantly proclaims that these masks hides his true personality. He is afraid to show his true self because he does not want to be rejected from society and continuously describes himself but reveals nothing about his true self. He later explains that people’s acts of kindness make him feel alive and he wants the audience to know that they are important to help him overcome his identity crisis. He has hope in humanity and he believes that “love is stronger than strong walls” (line 47). The speaker symbolizes society and everyone wears masks because we are afraid to be judged by others.

Throughout this poem, the author uses various literary devices. Firstly, he creates imagery which drives the audience to visualize pictures in their minds. When he states: “My surface may

He mainly wants the audience to hear what he does not say or mention and instead the audience must assume what the real message of the poem is. In the first few stanzas, the speaker seems very hopeless, dark, and disappointed, though there is a very clear shift in the middle of the poem. After the ironic line: “What for survival I need to say, but what I can’t say” the tone immediately changes and there is hope. The author expresses that if everyone cared for each other, people would not try hiding their identities and everyone would display their real