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By Paul Laurence Dunbar. We wear the mask that grins and lies, It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,— This debt we pay to human guile; With torn and bleeding hearts we smile, And mouth with myriad subtleties. Why should the world be over-wise, In counting all our tears and sighs? Nay, let them only see us, while. We wear the mask.
- Sympathy by Paul Laurence Dunbar
Paul Laurence Dunbar was born on June 27, 1872, to two...
- The Haunted Oak
Paul Laurence Dunbar was born on June 27, 1872, to two...
- Sympathy by Paul Laurence Dunbar
Learn about the meaning, themes, and poetic devices of Paul Laurence Dunbar's poem \"We Wear the Mask\", which compares surviving oppression to wearing a mask. Find line-by-line explanations, symbols, vocabulary, and context resources.
- Stanza One
- Stanza Two
- Stanza Three
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In the first stanza of this piece, the speaker begins by utilizing the refrain. It is also the line that later became the title of the poem. He is using the word “We” to allow the reader to include themselves in the text. All people are among those who “wear mask[s].” That being said, Dunbar is well-known as a pioneer of the Harlem Renaissance. Thi...
The fourth stanza of this piece is a quatrain, meaning it contains four lines. These lines begin with the speaker asking a rhetorical question. He does not expect to receive an answer. This does not mean the question lacks importance. It is posed to make one consider the state of the world and perhaps further the question themselves. He asks why th...
The final stanza of this piece contains six lines. It begins with the speaker increasing the already dark nature of the piece. He explains how “We smile” but no matter what the “cries” come out from “tortured souls.” They “arise” from behind the mask and into the real, knowable world. He sets up a second contrast in the next lines with a comparison...
Learn about the meaning and structure of Dunbar's poem, which explores the masks that people wear to hide their true feelings and struggles. The poem uses a rondeau form, a refrain, and irony to express the speaker's perspective on human guile and society.
- Female
- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
A poem about the mask of racial oppression and the hidden pain of African Americans. The poet expresses the irony of smiling and singing while suffering and crying, and asks God to hear their cries.
We Wear the Mask" is an 1895 poem in the rondeau form by Paul Laurence Dunbar. It is generally considered one of his most famous works and has been cited by several scholars as his best poem. The poem appeared in Dunbar's second volume of poetry.
Learn about the poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar that uses a rondeau form to explore the metaphor of a mask. Find a summary, analysis, speaker, and quotes from the poem.
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Paul Laurence Dunbar. “We Wear the Mask” was first published in Dunbar’s volume Majors and Minors (1896). This poem sheds some light on what it can be like to be black in a...
