"Dream Variation"
To fling my arms wide
In some place of the sun,
To whirl and to dance
Till the white day is done.
Then rest at cool evening
Beneath a tall tree
While night comes on gently,
Dark like me-
That is my dream!
To fling my arms wide
In the face of the sun,
Dance! Whirl! Whirl!
Till the quick day is done.
Rest at pale evening . . .
A tall, slim tree . . .
Night coming tenderly
Black like me.
I selected this poem due to its similarity to some themes in the novel “The Warmth of Other Suns. ” in particular the story entitled Disillusionment (pg 371). The story of Disillusionment is about a dilemma that Ida Mae and her family faced upon reaching the north. The north was where dreams and aspirations of equality and the betterment of life were believed to be found. The North meant better homes and better jobs.
The poem begins with ideas about hope and freedoms. This is depicted by the manner in which the first stanza is written. Upon reading it we are filled with images of ease, peace, rest and a sense of hope for “some place in the sun”(what the north was believed to be). However the second stanza where the teller of the poem is now “in the face of the sun” (or in the north) the ideas and pace of the poem which had first depicted tranquility are now rushed and less dream like.
This unfulfilled dream was the reality that many migrants faced in the north. There were some aspects of the north that did not turn out to be much different from the south just as Idea Mae’s family found upon moving into a neighborhood that was not a part of the “black belt.” When the family first attempted to move in they were stopped by hecklers and law officials. The second time they were forcibly removed, ransacked and had their belongings plundered and destroyed by white protesters.
Instances like this made blacks in the North weary and the dream was differed in to a new direction, the direction to merely deal with their daily lives and the absence of a dream.
Ingrid, I like how you mention that this representation of the North was an unfulfilled dream of most migrants. I feel like for most Southern blacks, they were not just looking at the North as an answered prayer, but more along the lines that any place is better than the South. Though they hoped that the effects of the Jim Crow laws were not going to occur in the North, they may have also believed that it could not be any worst than being hung from a tree like Southern whites would do. I love the idea that poem presents, since the North is viewed as the dream and once it was achieved in terms of being able to go there, then one can make their own decision about how it is. This treatment of the North in terms of its view, reminds me of the US as a whole due to the fact, the US is viewed as this great place with slogans such as “Land of the Free” or “Land of Opportunity.” Yet once a foreigner or immigrant comes here, the country does not meet up to this standard at least in terms of their own treatment in society. Though the North may have had opportunities, Southern blacks did not want to look at the North in all aspects, but more in this dream approach where it is a “happy place.”
ReplyDeleteIt’s good to see that someone has the same perspective and thoughts that I do, after reading “Disillusionment.” I thought about a class that I took, Black Studies 38A. Most of the textbooks were about migration and finding opportunities in the North. But every single story showed how migration never helped them “escape” their troubles. I also enjoyed reading the poem you selected. I definitely see the connection of peace and rest and then in the second stanza there seem to be a transition were the dream is deferred.
ReplyDeleteExcellent post Ingrid. I think the connection of this poem to the struggles of African Americans coming from the south to the north is very significant. I think it is important for us to acknowledge just how segregated and violent the north could be for African Americans. What I have been hoping to find through readings and class discussions are the significant factors that went into making African Americans feel welcome at some point in time in their journey to the north or while living there. All four of my grandparents have migrated to the Los Angeles area during the 2nd migration, just as Ida Mae and her family migrated (two of my grandparents from a northern area, actually). I can never get out of them a real reason for moving - or one that seems juicy enough. Their answers always seem to deal with jobs and just being tired of Georgia/ New Jersey. However, when looking at Los Angeles, aside from bright lights and pretty girls, all I can really see is corruption and segregation. I know each area demographically like the back of my hand. I find this particularly interesting when viewing this post because I couldn't melt and pour my grandparents to ever have thought about going back, however the same problems in this city persist and at higher levels a lot of the times.
ReplyDeleteGood Post.
Brian B.