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Sympathy Dunbar Summary

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The most prominent theme of Dunbar's poem “Sympathy” is the pain of the oppressed African-Americans and their longing for freedom. It’s expressed through the suffering of a "caged bird." While the caged bird is like a normal bird with wings but it can’t use the wings to fly and be free. . Instead, its soft wings are used to strike against the bars hoping to break free. This leaves the bird with sore bleeding wings.”…the caged bird beats his wing, till its blood is red on the cruel bars”. Using this imagery, of the caged bird, the poet expresses the ordeal of African-Americans. For ages, they have been oppressed and enslaved by the whites. The iron bars represent the systematic racism that has prevented them to live a normal life. Langston

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