The Caged Bird Poem Meaning

You lot are almost to encounter a detailed analysis of Caged Bird (or I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings), a poem by the African-American writer, Maya Angelou.

This is Caged Bird analyzed for you. All key aspects of the poem you need to study for the examination are on full display in this all-in-one tutorial.

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And I have a surprise for you. At the end of this post, you lot tin click on the appropriate link to download the PDF copy of this analysis of Caged Bird past Maya Angelou.

For our full appreciation and analysis of Caged Bird, past Maya Angelou, nosotros shall have a close await at the post-obit aspects of the poem.

The total text of the verse form, Caged Bird

Discipline matter and significant of the verse form

The themes of the poem

The poetic devices Maya Angelou employs to convey her bulletin to her audience.

A word on the championship of the poem, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings"

Subject field Matter of the Verse form

Today, you accept the opportunity to get the truthful meaning and summary of Caged Bird or (I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings) past Maya Angelou.

In all, the poem, I know Why the Caged Bird Sings has six stanzas.

In this summary of Caged Bird, I volition take you lot through the subject matter of each of the vi stanzas of the poem.

Simply before we get to its meaning and summary , I want you lot to have the complete text of the poem.

And so, here comes the full text of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings popularly referred to as "CAGED BIRD".

Maya Angelou: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Total TEXT

ONE

A free bird leaps on the back

Of the current of air and floats downstream

Till the electric current ends and dips his wing

In the orange suns rays

And dares to claim the sky.

Two

But a BIRD that stalks downwards his narrow cage

Can seldom run across through his confined of rage

His wings are clipped and his feet are tied

And so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill

Of things unknown but longed for all the same

And his tune is heard on the distant hill for

The caged bird sings of freedom.

FOUR

The free bird thinks of some other cakewalk

And the merchandise winds soft through

The sighing trees

And the fat worms waiting on a dawn-vivid

Lawn and he names the sky his own.

Five

But a caged BIRD stands on the grave of dreams

His shadow shouts on a nightmare scream

His wings are clipped and his feet are tied

So he opens his pharynx to sing.

SIX

The caged bird sings with

A fearful trill of things unknown

Merely longed for even so and his

Melody is heard on the distant loma

For the caged bird sings of freedom.

Now, it'south time for you to get the summary, subject matter or the meaning of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

STANZA ONE: What liberty means for a free bird

In the get-go stanza of the poem "Caged Bird", the poet introduces the reader to a free bird – the direct reverse of a caged bird.

The free bird has the liberty to live the kind of life that, naturally, all birds cherish and enjoy.

Below are some of the liberties that the gratuitous bird enjoys.

The free bird lives without any restrictions on his life. He comes and goes as he pleases. His freedom of motility is guaranteed.

The gratuitous bird tin easily fly high up in the sky

He hardly has any obstacles on the way as his life is only one of a downstream rather than an upstream movement.

The resources to enable him to soar as high as he wants are at its disposal. The current of air, heaven, currents and sun are examples of these easily available resources.

Freedom allows the gratuitous bird to dare to dream as large as he wants.

It is obvious that this is a happy bird. He is not angry and has no bitter feelings. Because no i has tried to restrict his movement or accept away his natural rights.

And then busy is the free bird, enjoying his carefree life that he has no reason to ask for freedom. Because he has not been denied 1.

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STANZA 2: The plight of the caged bird

Dissimilar the free bird in the starting time stanza of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the Caged bird, in the 2nd stanza, is full of rage and resentment. This rage is borne out of the unproblematic fact that he has been denied its natural liberties.

Hither are the major aspects of the life of the caged bird in Maya Angelou's verse form, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

He lives in captivity. The caged bird has been taken away from its natural habitat and literally placed behind bars 20-four hours a day.

The caged bird is in a perpetual country of rage because of the treatment he receives from his captors.

Bitterness has numbed his power to dream of distant places the way birds are born to dream and explore the earth and the heaven.

Every resource, that should enable him to get far in life has been taken away from the caged bird.

His wings are clipped and his feet are tied.

In such a sorry state of affairs, the only thing the caged bird can do is to wish and hope for life without captivity. He does this with a song of freedom.

STANZA Iii: The caged bird sings with a voice filled with emotion.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill

Of things unknown only longed for yet

And his tune is heard on the distant hill for

The caged bird sings of freedom.

And so the caged bird spends his time in captivity to dream and hope for all the things that are his natural right but which he has never seen before.

The caged bird cries out for freedom.

STANZA Four: The free bird has everything.

The free bird thinks of another breeze

And the trade winds soft through

The sighing trees

And the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright

Backyard and he names the sky his own.

In the 4th stanza of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the poet gives us a clear picture of the stark contrast between the conditions of these ii birds. Below are what the costless bird has and can do. They are all denied the other bird held in captivity.

He can determine for himself where to get and which i of his numerous privileges to access adjacent. These include

Travel to another location – another breeze

Fly freely on the trade winds

Perch on any tree anywhere

Feed on the all-time of meals – fatty worms

Have all the world at his disposal – he names the sky his own

STANZA FIVE: THE CAGED BIRD GOES THROUGH A PAINFUL EXPERIENCE

Simply a caged BIRD stands on the grave of dreams

His shadow shouts on a nightmare scream

His wings are clipped and his feet are tied

Then he opens his throat to sing.

We render to the unfortunate condition of the caged bird in the fifth stanza of the poem. Hither is the summary and pregnant of the fifth stanza of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

Whatsoever adventure of realizing his hopes and dreams is almost non-real. It is expressionless and buried in "the grave of dreams".

The life of the caged bird is ane long and painful nightmare. Considering he appears to have lost everything.

But, at least, he still has his pharynx to force out a cry for freedom.

STANZA Half dozen: THE Tertiary STANZA REPEATED

Stanza six is the final stanza of the poem I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Information technology is basically a repetition of the third stanza of the poem.

Summary of the Basic Construction of "Caged Bird" Poem

Thus, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a six-stanza poem. Each stanza focuses on highlighting the land of the gratuitous bird and the caged bird. The poet goes about this in an almost alternating mode.

Information technology is significant to annotation, however, that the poet devotes most of the lines of the poem to the plight of the caged bird.

As you tin can meet, stanza one focuses on the condition of the complimentary bird. The fruits of liberty that the free bird enjoys remain a distant dream for the caged bird.

The 2d and tertiary stanzas become to tell us the unenviable condition of the bird that has been held in captivity all his life.

Stanza four goes back to continue a description of the life of the privileged gratis bird.

The last ii stanzas (five and six) tell us more about the humiliating situation the caged bird finds itself.

We are about to have our assay of Caged Bird to the next level. And so, please, spike your belts and come fly with me.

Ready? Let's go!

The Themes of "Caged Bird"

Maya Angelou'south poem, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" exposes and criticizes the state of affairs in an American society blighted past the scourge of racial bigotry.

The poet employs the metaphor of the unlike living conditions of two birds to give a agonizing narrative of the stark realities of life in her multi-racial country.

The caged bird represents the blacks who have been denied their freedom and basic natural rights.

The gratis bird, on the other hand, is representative of the privileged white race.

Following are the major themes in the poem, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings".

THE Significant AND SUMMARY OF RAIDER OF THE TREASURE TROVE

Analysis OF Journeying OF THE MAGI

Analysis OF THE GRIEVED LANDS

1. Furnishings of Racial Discrimination on the Black Population

African-Americans live like caged birds in their land of birth. The injustices they suffer due to racial bias are many and the effects humiliating.

Here is a land in which the whites are the ones who have an most exclusive grip on political and economic power.

It is this control of power that is misused to oppress blacks.

The blacks have, for far too long, been denied every opportunity to lead a life befitting all human beings. Like birds in captivity, blacks have been denied their freedom.

They cannot move effectually as freely as the whites practice. Neither can they savor the same social atmospheric condition that are freely bachelor to their fellow white countrymen.

On a daily basis, the black population has to suffer the consequences of racism such as poverty, low quality educational facilities and inadequate housing.

Thus, the poet paints a disturbing picture of life for the average black person in America.

Given these unacceptable conditions, blacks in America, similar the caged bird, tin only watch in acrimony and resentment.

Blacks in America can only wait on with green-eyed every bit their white counterparts live a life of privilege, luxury and condolement the way the complimentary bird does.

2. The Importance of Man Freedom and Liberty OR The Themes of Freedom and Privilege

Another major theme in "Caged Bird" is the of import role freedom and liberty (or the denial of it) can play in the life of every human existence.

Similar the gratis bird, freedom has enabled the white population to become very far in every attribute of life – political, economic and social.

Blacks, on the other hand, have been reduced to a state of deprivation, anger and despair considering of their lack of opportunities.

It is an irony that even though the American gild is founded on the ideals of liberty and human dignity, a department of its population has been denied their key human rights for so long.

Indeed, this unfortunate situation has its roots in the history of slavery in America.

3. The Theme of Captivity

Let'south now turn our attention to our next theme in this analysis of Caged Bird.

The theme of captivity in "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" is our adjacent terminate.

Captivity is another major theme in the verse form. It is what the status of the caged bird refers to. Captivity is the worst situation in which a people can find themselves. Because a captive is only like a slave.

Like a bird held captive in a cage, the blacks take all their rights denied them.

Their inability to movement around freely is therefore not but physical. Social mobility, for instance, is incommunicable for the boilerplate African-American.

In improver, they have limited economical opportunities. Discrimination against the blacks extends to the judicial organisation.

Blacks feel hemmed-in past the white-controlled system. Nether such circumstances, the best they tin exercise is to keep crying out for the granting of their freedom.

Clearly, it is for liberty that the caged bird sings.

This, therefore, takes united states of america to another important stage of our assay of Caged Bird. Below is a brief comment on the title of the poem, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

This is basically about the significance of the song or singing in the lives of blacks in American society.

Permit's start with a quick question.

Is "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" an appropriate title for Maya Angelou'south poem? Definitely, yeah. She employs it to develop the theme of the song/singing or music in the poem.

Ane reason for this is that much of the poem contains references to the singing of the caged bird. So the poet has succeeded in making the championship the cardinal point in the poem.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill

Of things unknown but longed for still

And his tune is heard on the distant hill for

The caged bird sings of liberty.

So why does the caged bird sing? The simple answer nosotros have in the poem is this.

Singing a song is the caged bird'southward but tool for fighting oppression in captivity.

In other words, the oppressed blacks use music, in general, and songs in item, not but to cope with the racial injustice and lack of freedom they suffer merely as well to fight confronting it.

Apart from religion, music and songs have been known to be two of the popular coping mechanisms available to the oppressed blacks in American lodge.

This was both during the period of slavery and in the years of the civil rights movement following the abolitionism of slavery.

Blacks in this lodge used songs to soothe their pain. Further, they had songs that were symbols of defiance and of their struggle for freedom.

A vocal may appear to be a weak weapon for fighting captivity. Only it is the merely tool a convict tin have since it is coming from the inside, his throat, and therefore cannot be easily taken away.

His wings are clipped and his anxiety are tied

So he opens his throat to sing.

Poetic Devices

Allow's now plough our attention to the poetic devices or techniques in our assay of Caged Bird.

Wording and Imagery

The poet in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings employs certain words and expressions to create poignant images of freedom and captivity. We besides accept glimpses of the privileged lifestyle of the whites as compared to the lack of opportunities which has become the lot of the oppressed blacks.

POETIC DEVICES AND TYPES OF POETRY You lot NEED TO KNOW

Here are examples of diction in the verse form and the images that they evoke.

FREEDOM AND PRIVILEGE: complimentary, freedom, leaps, floats, downstream, wing, dares, claim the sky, trade winds, breeze, fat worms, dawn-brilliant lawn, names the sky his ain,

CAPTIVITY: stalks down, narrow, cage, seldom, bars, rage, wings are clipped, feet are tired, throat, caged, fearlful, trill, longed, distant, sings, grave, dreams, screams

RACIAL Bigotry: rage, throat, sing, things unknown, dreams, shadow, nightmare,

NATURE: bird, wind, downstream, electric current, sun'southward rays, cakewalk, copse, hills

Annotation that while the free bird easily gets admission to the elements (all opportunities) and can "claim the heaven equally his ain", the hills (personal growth and achievement) are out of reach for the caged bird. (distant hills)

Epitome OF ACTION/ DOING

thinks, sings, stands, shouts, opens, floats, leaps, ends, dares, stalks, run across, names

These are appropriate to the poem which is well-nigh the ability (or the denial of it) of people to act on their dreams and aspirations.

IMAGE OF MOVEMENT/OF Freedom

float, leaps, downstream, current

These are associated with the life of the gratuitous bird and, for that affair, the privileged white population.

OTHER LITERARY DEVICES

Y'all must not ignore the post-obit literary devices in your analysis of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

Metaphor

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings develops around the metaphors of a gratuitous bird and ane held in captivity.

We've already noted that the free bird is a metaphor for the privileged white segment of American social club. They are, at the same fourth dimension, the perpetrators of racial injustice confronting the black population.

The caged bird that sings represents the blacks that endure from the effects of racial inequality. Only similar a bird that has been denied its most important freedom (to move around and explore the sky and the world), blacks have been limited in their ability to develop themselves and enjoy a better life.

Here are other instances of metaphor in the poem

bars of rage

grave of dreams

Symbolism

Below are examples of the use of symbols in Maya Angelou'due south I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

The Song:

The vocal that the caged bird sings tin can be seen equally a symbol of black resistance against white domination. Information technology stands for their hope for the future and their inner strength to fight and need liberty from their oppressors.

Sky

Heaven, in the poem, is a symbol of personal development and accomplishment.

Similar many other words associated with nature imagery in the poem, the heaven is there for only the free bird to claim.

In effect, in the American society, it is simply the free whites, who have the resource that all humans need to develop and prosper.

Cage

Cage, conspicuously, is a symbol of captivity. Information technology stands for all the impediments put in the way of blacks in their attempt to reach higher and realize their potential.

Irony

The most striking irony in Maya Angelou'south poem is this. Freedom is denied one segment of the population of a country that prides itself on the ethics of equal rights, individual freedom and liberty. This is clearly an indictment on a nation that preaches freedom to the rest of the world.

Contrast

The persona in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings contrasts the carefree, privileged life of the whites to the restrictions placed on blacks in the American social club.

Much of the poem Caged Bird's diction and imagery revolves around the differences in the conditions of these two segments of the society.

The near of import words that convey the state of racial inequality in the American society are FREE and CAGED.

The construction of the poem is also built effectually the poetic device known as contrast.

We can observe that while the first stanza speaks of the fruits of freedom freely bachelor to the whites, the second and third stanzas plow to the contrary direction. These ii stanzas speak to the sorry condition of the blackness race in the same society.

This movement between the two opposite conditions in America continues up to the terminate of the poem.

Thus, the poet has used the poetic device of dissimilarity to expose and also criticize racial bigotry in her native land.

To Maya Angelou, the perpetration of racial injustice is a blot on the conscience of a nation that was founded on the principle of equality for all.

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Personification

sighing copse

shadow shouts

Alliteration

Beneath are instances of alliteration in the poem

seldom see

merely a bird

worms waiting

shadow shouts

Assonance

his/wings

gratuitous/leaps

dips/his/wings

sings/with/trill

dawn/lawn

Repetition

His wings are clipped and his feet are tied

and then he opens his throat to sing

costless bird

caged bird

heaven

sing

Annotation likewise that all of stanza 3 is repeated in stanza six

Hyperbole

claim the sky

names the sky his own

Rhyme

The verse form does not follow any specific rhyme pattern. Nevertheless, there are few cases of rhyme to note.

rage/cage

trill/still

I trust that this analysis of Caged Bird will help you lot to bargain comfortably with whatever question on the poem.

Await out for likely test questions on Caged Bird.

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