Download Comparative Analysis of Song and Poem: Perseverance and Resilience and more Study notes Poetry in PDF only on Docsity! Sophomore Level 1 (1021) Remote Learning Assignment – Week of May 11, 2020 Comparative Analysis: Song and Poem Did you know that the lyrics to SONGS are actually POEMS? Yes, poems. Last week, you all did a GREAT job understanding the THEME (main idea) of Maya Angelou’s poem, “Still I Rise.” Angelou’s THEME, in Fred’s words, is that “perseverance and resilience are vital in the face of oppression,” or, as Jade put it, “to flourish and be successful through hardships and have hope for the good to outweigh the bad, and through that, ‘rise’.” This week, I would like you to choose one of YOUR FAVORITE SONGS, one that has a SIMILAR THEME to Angelou’s poem. You can choose a song from ANY genre (not instrumental – must have lyrics). If your song choice has questionable content/language, please use a CLEAN version for the assignment. - You will answer some questions about your song choice, and you will also write a comparative analysis of the song and the poem “Still I Rise” (which is the last question). - Use the “Poetry Terms to Know” handout on Schoology (Essential Handouts Folder) if you need a reminder about a specific literary term. (e.g. Stanza) - Make sure your answers are thoughtful, cited properly, and polished for correct grammar. - Example of citing the poem: The speaker of the poem says, “Leaving behind nights of terror and fear / I rise” (Angelou 31-32). IMPORTANT NOTE! If you do not cite the song and poem properly in this assignment, I will be asking you to work on it again before I give you credit for the assignment. I’ve included the poem again here for you. Still I Rise By Maya Angelou, 1928 - 2014 You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I’ll rise. 5 Does my sassiness upset you? Why are you beset with gloom? ‘Cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells Pumping in my living room. Just like moons and like suns, 10 With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I’ll rise. Did you want to see me broken? Bowed head and lowered eyes? 15 Shoulders falling down like teardrops, Weakened by my soulful cries? Does my haughtiness offend you? Don’t you take it awful hard ‘Cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines 20 Diggin’ in my own backyard. You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I’ll rise. 25 Out of the huts of history’s shame I rise Up from a past that’s rooted in pain I rise I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide, 30 Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear I rise 35 Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise. 1. Please COPY/PASTE the lyrics to your SONG here. Make sure you include the TITLE and the ARTIST’S name at the top. You may also include the YouTube link to the song so I can listen to it (optional). 2. What is the song about? (What is the story in the song?) 3. As we have learned this year, writers often use Figurative Language to create imagery and meaning. We’ve learned about metaphors, similes, personification, allusions, and symbols, which are all types of figurative language that writers use. Find at least 1 example of figurative
