Countee+Cullen

http://www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/poets/cullen.php Countee LeRoy Porter was born in Louisville,  Kentucky in 1903. Cullen was raised by his paternal grandmother in New York City until 1918. In 1918 Cullen was adopted by Reverend Frederick Asbury Cullen which completely turned his life around. Cullen started writing poetry in his early high school years; when he reached college he started receiving awards. His sophomore year at New York University he received second prize in the Witter Bynner Poetry Contest. In his last year at New York University he wrote the poem "Color." In 1925 he graduated from New York University and won the Witter Bynner Poetry Contest. In 1926 he graduated from Harvard University with a M.A. degree and traveled to France as a Guggenheim Fellow. Two years later Cullen returned to America and married a woman named Yolanda Du Bois, who was the daughter of W.E.B. Du Bois. After two years of marriage the couple divorced because Cullen told her that he likes people of the same sex as him. In 1934 Cullen started teaching English at Frederick Douglas Junior High School. Before he started teaching high school he declined a teaching job at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1940 he married his friend Ida Mae Roberson. In 1946 he died of a gastrointestinal disorder. Since his tragic death, Cullen has been admired as one of the greatest African American writers of his time.
 * Countee Cullen**

Color(1925)

**I doubt not God is good, well-meaning, kind, And did He stoop to quibble could tell why The little buried mole continues blind, Why flesh that mirrors Him must someday die, Make plain the reason tortured Tantalus Is baited by the fickle fruit, declare If merely brute caprice dooms Sisyphus To struggle up a never-ending stair. Inscrutable His ways are, and immune To catechism by a mind too strewn With petty cares to slightly understand What awful brains compels His awful hand. Yet do I marvel at this curious thing: To make a poet black, and bid him sing! ** ('Yet Do I Marvel')  This poem is centered around the cosmopolitan area which is located in Harlem, New York. The poem talks about celebrating the beauty of being black and it talks about racism. It also states that God is good and God is there for the black people of America. The Harlem Renaissance was a period of time between the end of WWI and the middle of the 1930's depression that marked an explosion of music, literary works, and paintings by African Americans. The Harlem Renaissance was more than just a literary movement, it included racial consciousness, " the Back to Africa " movement led by Marcus Garvey. This movement of " racial consciousness " is abundent in the works of Countee Cullen. Cullen was a highly educated African American. He attended college at New York University. Although Cullen sought to explore black American life, he thought that his poetry should not be racially or politically motivated. Cullen's most famous poems are " Yet Do I Marvel " and " Incident ", which describes his childhood trip to Baltimore married by a racial slur. Some common themes in the Harlem Renaissance are: alienation; marginality of blacks through racism and the attempt to integrate into a diverse community; the use of African folk material; the blues; and writing or performing. In Countee Cullen's poetry there is little use of racism. Cullen was one of the better poets of the Harlem Renaissance. The reason Cullen made a big name for himself during the Harlem Renaissance was because he started writing at a young age. He is also famous because he writes things everybody will like, he doesn't just talk about the black culture or about racism in that time period.

The Wise
 ** Dead men are wisest, for they know How far the roots of flowers go, How long a seed must rot to grow.

Dead men alone bear frost and rain On throbless heart and heatless brain, And feel no stir of joy or pain.

Dead men alone are satiate; They sleep and dream and have no weight, To curb their rest, of love or hate.

Strange, men should flee their company, Or think me strange who long to be Wrapped in their cool immunity.

Written by Countée Cullen (1903-1946) [|The Wise] **

Analysis: In the poem “The Wise” by Countee Cullen, when Cullen states that, “Dead men alone bear frost and rain on throbless heart and heatless brain, and feel no stir of joy or pain.” Cullen means that since the “dead men,” are dead they do not feel any of the emotions those that are alive feel, they don’t feel “joy or pain.” When Cullen writes that “dead men… feel no stir of joy or pain,” it means that they have had their share of experiences while they were living and have already experienced plenty of joyful and painful experiences while they were alive, such as segregation, and so now they just “sleep and dream” peacefully and don’t think of their past experiences. Last but not least Cullen or the narrator of the poem thinks it odd that people are not interested in these “dead men” and then wonders if maybe those people think he’s odd for being so wound up in the “dead man’s” freedom from racism, and segregation.

Rhyme Scheme: AAABBBCCCDDD Alliteration: “How __far __ the roots of __flowers __ go,” “On throbless __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">heart __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">heatless __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> brain,” “ __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Strange __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, men __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">should __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> flee their company,”

Ceasura: “Dead are the wisest __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> for they know” “To curb their rest __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> of love or hate.” “Strange __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> men should flee their company,”

End Stop: “How far the roots of flowers go __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “How long a seed must rot to grow __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “On throbless heart and heatless brain __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “And feel no stir of joy or pain __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “Dead men alone are satiate __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">; __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “They sleep and dream and have no weight __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “To curb their rest, of love or hate __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “Strange, men should flee their company __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” “Wrapped in their cool immunity __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">” <span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">Saturday's Child

<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">**<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">Some are teethed on a silver spoon, With the stars strung for a rattle; I cut my teeth as the black racoon-- For implements of battle. **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);"> **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">Some are swaddled in silk and down, And heralded by a star; They swathed my limbs in a sackcloth gown On a night that was black as tar. **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);"> **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">For some, godfather and goddame The opulent fairies be; Dame Poverty gave me my name,And Pain godfathered me. **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">

**<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">For I was born on Saturday-- "Bad time for planting a seed," Was all my father had to say, And, "One mouth more to feed." **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">

**<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">Death cut the strings that gave me life, And handed me to Sorrow, The only kind of middle wife My folks could beg or borrow. **<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);"> <span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">

__<span style="display: block; text-align: center; color: rgb(0, 127, 209);">Written by Countée Cullen (1903-1946) __ [|Saturday's Child]
<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);"> <span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Analysis: In “Saturday’s Child” by Countee Cullen, Cullen basically states that “some people,” white people, are well off; they don’t have to worry as much about their finances as those who are African American. The second thing Cullen does is he compares those that are wealthy to the narrator by saying that “Some are swaddled in silk and down” and the narrator was “swathed … in a sackcloth gown.” The next part of the poem is about how the narrator is poor and “poverty gave me my name,” also it’s about how the wealthier white folks have godfathers and the narrator does not have a real godfather, because he is poor the pain that comes from that is his godfather. Next, Cullen tells us about when the narrator, was born, and says it was a bad time to be born. The narrator’s family was so poor that all they could think about was how they were going to get the money to pay for the extra “mouth to feed.” Cullen finally tells us about how the period of time in which the narrator was born was so awful, and sad, that the baby was ”handed to sorrow,” because they couldn't afford an actual middle wife. Rhyme Scheme: ABABCDCDEFEFGHGHIJIJ

Alliteration: “ __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);">Some __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);"> are teethed on a __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);">silver __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);"> __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);">spoon __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209);">,” “<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">__Some__ are __swaddled__ in __silk__ and down,” “They __swathed__ my limbs in a __sackcloth__ gown” “For some, __godfather__ and __goddame__” “Dame Poverty gave __me__ __my__ name,” “And, "One __mouth__ __more__ to feed.’” “Death cut __the__ strings __that__ gave me life,”  “My folks could __beg__ or __borrow__.”

Ceasura: “For some__,__ godfather and goddame” “And__,__ "One mouth more to feed.’”

End Stop: “Some are teethed on a silver spoon__,__” “With the stars strung for a rattle__;__” “I cut my teeth as the black racoon__—__“ “For implements of battle__.__” “Some are swaddled in silk and down__,__  ” “And heralded by a star__;__  ” ”On a night that was black as tar__.__” “The opulent fairies be__;__  ” “Dame Poverty gave me my name__,__” ”And Pain godfathered me__.__” ”For I was born on Saturday__—__“ “’Bad time for planting a seed__,__’” “Was all my father had to say__,__  ” “And, "One mouth more to feed__.__’” <span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">”Death cut the strings that gave me life __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“ ”And handed me to Sorrow __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> ” “My folks could beg or borrow __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. __<span style="color: rgb(0,127,209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">”

Similes: "I cut my teeth as the black racoon-- " <span style="color: rgb(0, 127, 209); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"On a night that was black as tar."

Metonomy: silver spoon- wealth

Link to videos: http://mefeedia.com/entry/the-wise/14422786 http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/saturdays-child/5440073

<span style="color: rgb(213, 21, 21);">Works Cited

AfroPoets Famous Writers. 3 Mar. 2009 <http://www.AfroPoets.Net/counteecullen6.html> AfroPoets<span style="color: rgb(213, 21, 21);"> Famous Writers. 3 Mar.2009 <http://www.afropoets.net/counteecullen2.html>