Literary Devices Literary Devices    

Lesson 16: Metaphor: Sympathy

by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Performer: Librivox - David Barnes

Directions

Study the poem for one week.

Over the week:

• Read or listen to the poem.
• Review the synopsis.
• Read about the poet.
• Complete the enrichment activities.

Synopsis

Paul Laurence Dunbar's heart-wrenching poem, 'Sympathy,' is an extended metaphor, comparing oppressed people (e.g. minorities in an oppressive society) to a bird trapped in a cage. The bird longs for the beautiful breezes and sunlight of freedom so keenly, it bloodies its beating wings while trying to escape the cage. The bird sings not with happiness, but to pray to heaven for mercy.

Concepts

Poets often use literary devices, defined as 'rules of thumb, convention, or structure that are employed in literature and storytelling.'

The nine literary devices we'll study include:

1. Rhyming
2. Alliteration
3. Similes
4. Metaphors
5. Personification
6. Foreshadowing
7. Allusion
8. Hyperbole
9. Onomatopoeia

Metaphors use a word or phrase to refer to something that they are not to make an implied comparison.

Enrichment

Activity 1: Recite Poem Information

Recite the title of the poem and the name of the poet.

Activity 2: Study the Poem Picture

Study the poem picture and describe how it relates to the poem.

Activity 3: Recite the Poem

Practice reciting the poem aloud.

Activity 4: Identify the Metaphors in the Examples

Read aloud the metaphors below. Note that metaphors make a comparison like a simile but do not use 'as' and 'like.'

• Her fingernails were sharpened scissors. (fingernails compared to scissors)
• His nose was a sharp-peaked mountain. (nose compared to mountain)
• The mower tamed the overgrown jungle entangling the backyard. (yard/grass compared to jungle)
• The fairy princess twirled in her Halloween costume. (person compared to fairy princess)
• Her runny nose was a faucet. (runny nose compared to faucet)

Activity 5: Identify the Rhyme Scheme

Review the poem and identify the pattern of its rhyming scheme. (e.g. ABBACDCD, etc.)

Activity 6: Identify Alliteration

• Review the poem and point out any instances of alliteration.
• For example, 'When he beats his bars,' repeats the sound of 'b.'

Activity 7: Identify Similes

• Review the poem excerpts and identify any similes.
• Name the pairs of elements that the similes compare.

Activity 8: Identify Metaphors

Review the poem excerpts, and identify the metaphors.

Name the pairs of elements that the metaphors compare.

• I know what the caged bird feels, alas! (Hint: What might the cage represent? What might the bird represent?
• Till its blood is red on the cruel bars; (Hint: What beyond the bars of a cage might the 'cruel bars' refer to?)

Activity 9: Complete Book Activities   

• Click the crayon above, and complete pages 49-51 of 'Elementary Poetry 5: Literary Devices.'

References

'Metaphors.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.