CounteeCullen

=__Countee Cullen - Casey Rand__=

Biography-
Countee Cullen was born in 1903. He was brought up in New York City, then moved to Harlem when he grew older. Countee Cullen didn't reveal a lot about his life, and kept more to himself than other Harlem leaders. He started poetry when he was fourteen and continued throughout the rest of his life. He published many different titles throughout his life including, //Copper Sun, Color// and //Black Manhattan.// His first great volume, //Color,// was recognized for its deep exploration of racial segregation. He felt the same way that the other Harlem artists felt and showed it in his work. Countee Cullen expressed himself in his works. He eventually got in trouble because of it. Many black people felt that he didn't have the same deep and personal backgrounds they had. His readers appreciated his first album, but didn't feel that //Copper Sun// had the same effect as //Color// did. Countee Cullen was treated unfairly by several races because of the self-expression that he used.

Poem-
**The Shroud of Color by Countee Cullen **

"Lord, being dark," I said, "I cannot bear The further touch of earth, the scented air; Lord, being dark, forewilled to that despair My color shrouds me in, I am as dirt Beneath my brother's heel; there is a hurt In all the simple joys which to a child Are sweet; they are contaminate, defiled By truths of wrongs the childish vision fails To see; too great a cost this birth entails. I strangle in this yoke drawn tighter than The worth of bearing it, just to be man. I am not brave enough to pay the price In full; I lack the strength to sacrifice I who have burned my hands upon a star, And climbed high hills at dawn to view the far Illimitable wonderments of earth, For whom all cups have dripped the wine of mirth, For whom the sea has strained her honeyed throat Till all the world was sea, and I a boat Unmoored, on what strange quest I willed to float; Who wore a many-colored coat of dreams, Thy gift, O Lord--I whom sun-dabbled streams Have washed, whose bare brown thighs have held the sun Incarcerate until his course was run, I who considered man a high-perfected Glass where loveliness could lie reflected, Now that I sway athwart Truth's deep abyss, Denuding man for what he was and is, Shall breath and being so inveigle me Content, each new-born day, anew to see The steaming crimson vintage of my youth Incarnadine the altar-slab of Truth? ... Reaction: The speaker seems sorrowful, as though he's missed something. He's reflecting on all of the things that have happened and that might happen. Biography: See above. Imagery: All of the things he sees in life are different, unique and special. He speaks of honeyed throats. Many-Colored coat dreams shows more imagery. Metaphors: I am as dirt. The speaker feels sorrowful, like he needs to change what has happened.

Meaning-
Countee Cullen explored the meanings of life. He wanted to understand why things happened and how they happened. He wanted to analyze life and understand what it was a bout. Different views in life can only be seen once. Countee Cullen wanted to capture some of those feelings. He realized that some things could only be seen sometimes. He is feeling sorrowful about the things he has missed. He is feeling sorrowful about the things that his race will miss. He wants to change what is happening to his people, and he feels that it is unfair how they are being treated.

Works Cited-
" Countee Cullen- Poets.org - Poetry, Poems, Bios & More." //Poets.org - Poetry, Poems, Bios & More//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. < [|http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/55]>. "The Shroud of Color by CountÃ©e Cullen." //PoemHunter.Com - Thousands of poems and poets.. Poetry Search Engine//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. < [|http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-shroud-of-color/]>. name:. "Countee Cullen." //www.kirjasto.sci.fi//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. < [|http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/ccullen.htm]>.