Palmer Hayden's Commitment, Essex Hemphill

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“The more often we see the things around us - even the beautiful and wonderful things - the more they become invisible to us. That is why we often take for granted the beauty of this world: the flowers, the trees, the birds, the clouds - even those we love. Because we see things so often, we see them less and less” (Wirthlin, Joseph B., brainyquotes). The feeling of being invisible causes disconnection from the people around you that care for you tremendously. It’s a feeling that disorients your mind to think you are not being noticed, or that no one truly cares for your existence. Your heart tells you to be there for everyone you love, but your heart is yearning for someone to do the same for you. Within this essay, you will learn the interpretation
He uses the literature analysis of “Divisions, Conflicts, and multiple forces within the self” (Hemphill 399). The traits are being described by the tone of the poem and the conflict and division, he faces between himself and his family. He describes always being there for his family, and that is just his role, but in reality he wants mutual feelings towards him. In Palmer Hayden’s, Beale Street Blues, 1930’s, the art piece shows an outside juke joint, and everyone having a good time. You see people dancing and gambling, but looking closer at the picture you see a man in overalls in back, right side of the picture away from the

crowd and very distant from the portrait. He looks out of place and not in connection with everyone’s body language and facial expressions in the portrait.
Secondly, in the poem he states “I smile and serve my duty” (Hemphill 399), which is the literature analysis of “the unconscious” (103). This relation between the portrait and the poem are betrayed between the man in the back of the picture smiling, but not really included in the action of the picture. The disconnection is blatant, and correlates between Hemphill’s voice

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