May+Miller

=
{http://washingtonart.com/beltway/poetpics/mmiller.jpg} May Miller ("May Miller.") Biography May Miller was born on January 26, 1899 as a daughter of a sociologist from Howard University. She grew up in a household where influential people such as W. E. B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington were frequent guests. She graduated from Howard University in 1920 and soon became a very influential playwright ("May Miller -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia."). Many of her plays were used to break the stereotypes that were on African Americans and instead show them as normal, intelligent people that the white people failed to see. Her plays were important in the Harlem Renaissance movement to instill racial pride and earn respect for the African people. May Miller fit into the Harlem Renaissance because her writing was inspirational and influential to  the African Americans that she was creating an identity for ("May Miller Biography | BookRags.com."). In the 1940's, May Miller turned her attention to poetry when she was inspired by works of other African writers. Often, May Miller's characters would display a sense of power, courage and nobility that she was trying to display herself. Her poems often revolved around nature as she used it for a focal point in which to turn her attention to. May Miller used her self expression to change to way that people looked at African Americans. First through her playwrights, she was able to convey the message of the Harlem Renaissance to the people in a way of entertainment that everyone could understand. Then through her poetry, she was able to focus on the deeper aspect of the Harlem Renaissance and spread the word of racial pride ("May Miller Biography | BookRags.com."). Poetry Analysis The Washingtonian By May Miller Possessed of this city, we are born Into kinship with its people.Eyes that looked uponCool magnificence of space,The calm of marble,And green converging on greenIn long distances,Bear their wonder to refuteMeaningless dimensions,The Old-World facades. The city is ours irrevocablyAs pain sprouts at the edge of joy,As grief grows large with our years.New seeds push hard to topsoil;Logic is a grafted flowerFrom roots in a changeless bed.Skeleton steel may shadow the path,Broken stone snag the foot,But we shall walk againSide by side with others on the street,Each certain of his way home.Analysis In the Washingtonian, Mary Miller is writing about equality and how she knows that someday the African Americans will be treated fairly by white people. My initial reaction of this poem was really vague so I had to go back and closely analyze what the Mary Miller was trying to say. This poem follows her style of using nature in poety because she compares life to plants, "New seeds push hard to topsoil" (14). She also compares logic to a newly sprouted flower, "Logic is a grafted flower" (15). There is alot of symbolism in this poem that lead me to believe it was about equality. At the begining of the poem, Miller states that they are, "Possessed of this city, we are born/Into kinship with its people" (1-2). The poem starts with them as equal but then she says the people judge them unfairly when she says, "Eyes that looked upon" (3), and then, "The calm of marble,/And green converging on green" (5-6). Mary Miller also has the theme of "keep moving forward," when she says life will be tough, "Skeleton steel may shadow the path,/Broken stone snag the foot" (17-18). And after that she says they will keep pushing forward as equals, "But we shall walk again/Side by side with others on the street" (19-20). Mary Miller was an excellant playwright and poet, and work helped sparked the fire that the Harlem Renaissance was. She helped carve an indentity for African Americans, and she inspired them to fight for their equality. Works Cited "May Miller." washingtonart home page. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. http://washingtonart.com/beltway/mmiller.html. "May Miller Biography | BookRags.com." BookRags.com | Study Guides, Lesson Plans, Book Summaries and more. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. . "May Miller -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia." Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/382801/May-Miller. ======