With Reference To At Least Four Different Poems, Explore How Cultural

With Reference To At Least Four Different Poems, Explore How Cultural

Identity Is Represented By The Various Poets

The four poems I have selected to focus on all portray a cultural

identity in their own unique way. 'Wherever I hang' and 'The Fat Black

Woman Goes Shopping', are both written by Grace Nichols, a poet of

Guinean background. I have also chosen to explore 'Dream Variation' by

Langston Hughes as well as 'Half-Caste' by John Agard. I have chosen

this selection of poetry because I feel that each poem has great merit

in successfully challenging the racial disparities of the modern

world.

Grace Nichols unsurprisingly tends to base her poems around the

inequality between the black and white communities; this is reflected

in her poem 'Taint'. The poems I have chosen to investigate by her are

'The Fat Black Woman Goes Shopping' and 'Wherever I hang'. I chose to

include these poems because they are in contrast to many of her other

poems and it's content mainly comments on how white and black

lifestyles differ rather than her usual theme of black persecution.

The other two poems I have chosen by the two different poets both

concentrate more on black discrimination like 'Taint' and are more

similar to that poem, in this respect, than the two poems I chose by

Grace Nichols.

Langston Hughes writes a detailed analysis of the desires of the

average Black man in his poem "Dream Variation". Hughes was related to

John Mercer Langston, who was the first Black American to be elected

to public office, in 1855. Born into a family with a strong sense of

culture but a desire to be accepted, it is foreseeable that his poem

reflects his aspiration of cultural freedom. Hughes uses

representative imagery to portray...

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...e wants to live she will live despite all

obstacles-despite all cultural differences.

The four poems use various methods to convey their points, overall the

most effective being the humorous approach. Grace Nichols most

effectively conveys her cultural identity via her sarcastic and

amusing method of writing. This encourages the reader to think more

deeply about the poem and understand the idea of culture identity,

which could help acceptance of various cultures in Britain. Despite

this, I personally feel "Half-Caste" is the most striking poem,

stirring emotions deeper than mere amusement. The poem allows us to

understand how people of mixed race must feel when this term is used

and the implications of such a word. Although fairly aggressive, this

poem conveys most constructively the message of the necessity for

acceptance, to whoever the reader may be.