Running Head: MODULE 6 DISCUSSION 1

Module 6 Discussions

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Module 6 Discussions

Lesson 9: Discussion 1

Analysis of The Red Wheelbarrow

The Red Wheelbarrow is a four stanza poem written by William Carlos William. In the

poem, William describes a wheelbarrow that has been glazed with the rainwater. When a person

first reads the poem, it appears like William presents a red wheelbarrow to his audience and that

there is no meaning attached to it. However, after careful analysis, one can realize that it is not

just a description of a red wheelbarrow. Still, the wheelbarrow is a representation of the issues in

society. Therefore, it is essential to analyze the poem according to the criteria used in the

analysis of modernist poetry such as fragmentation, juxtaposition, and allusion.

The poem is one couplet and illustrates a single scene, and this could be an indication that

it highlighted the desire for Americans to have a better life. Fragmentation is a crucial feature of

modernism that entails leaving gaps in writing, thereby breaking the flow of the poem. The Red

Wheelbarrow is a short poem with one sentence broken into several fragments to provoke the

reader’s imaginations by focusing on the red wheelbarrow as the most relevant object in the

specific scene. William uses fragmentation in the third and fourth lines by breaking down the

word “wheelbarrow” into “wheel” in line three and “barrow” in line four (Williams, 1981).

Therefore, this technique enables the readers to carefully understand the wheelbarrow before

they see it as a whole object. The next line also separates the word “rainwater” into “rain” and

“water.” These words stand out in the poem and thus make readers look beyond the red

wheelbarrow and consider other objects like white chickens.

Eliot also uses fragmentation in The Waste Land to parallel broken relationships and

society. For example, in section three, he highlights the disintegration of Europe after World War
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I. “I can connect…Nothing with Nothing…The Broken fingernails of dirty hand…My people

humble people who expect…Nothing.” (Eliot, 2013). One can understand that before the war,

people helped each other. However, this changed after the war, as they could not offer much

help. Also, the breaking of the sentences deconstructs the reader's context as one seeks to find

out why the poet chose not to have a complete sentence in one line.

Another literary method used by William is a juxtaposition, and it entails illustrating

ideas, actions concurrently. It is highlighted in the poem by the use of nonliving and living

objects like the red wheelbarrow and white chickens, respectively (Williams, 1981). The

rainwater made the red wheelbarrow to have a deeper hue of red, while the chickens are whiter

because they are next to the red wheelbarrow. Similarly, Eliot uses juxtaposition in The Waste

Land by comparing the present and the past throughout the poem. He describes the present lines

111 and 139 and the past in lines 77 and 110. “What you get married for if you don’t’ want

children?” Therefore, juxtaposition highlights the modern attitude towards love and sex as

opposed to the attitude from the past. Allusion entails making intentional reference to history.

While this stylistic method lacks in The Red Wheelbarrow, it is available throughout The Waste

Land since Elliot makes references to the book of Ecclesiastes and Ezekiel (Eliot, 2013).

Therefore, Eliot uses the Bible as an incredible tool to influence an individual's lifestyle.

References

Eliot, T. S. (2013). The Waste Land (Liveright Classics). WW Norton & Company.

Williams, W. C. (1981). The Red Wheelbarrow. Poetry on the Buses, Chatham College.
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Lesson 10: Discussion 2

The Harlem Renaissance

Harlem Renaissance was a defining moment for African- Americans in the 1920s. It was

during this time that the negros became actively involved politically, artistically as well as

socially and academically as they choose to celebrate black life instead of protesting against the

past injustices during slavery. Jazz and blues musicians like Billie Holiday emerged among other

literary contributors like Jean Toomer and Langton Hughes. Most African-Americans also

became more confident, self-reliant, and outspoken as they settled in the northern urban centers

(Locke, 1992). Locke describes them as the new negros as they advocated for equal rights as

White Americans. Jim Crow laws were a hindrance to success for black people as it created

racial statutes segregating blacks and whites in learning institutions, restaurants, and public

transportation. However, the literacy expressions portrayed a sense of pride, independence, and

revolution among the black community. Alain Locke was one of African American writers that

created the idea of the new negro as portrayed in The New Negro. Therefore, Locke incorporates

the aspects of African American culture in his creative writings. Langton Hughes also conveys

Locke’s ideas in his poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers.

Locke presents his ideas from and African America’s perspective. The new Negro is

confidence, and have the self-assurance of becoming a better person in society regardless of the

existing racial discrimination. Locke compares the new negro to the old one to acknowledge the

contributions of the old negro towards shaping the perspectives of the new negro. Therefore, it

would have been impossible for the drastic change of black awareness to occur without the old

negro. Lock describes the new negro as outspoken and educated in various aspects of society.

They had. "…renewed self-respect and self-dependence…” (Locke, 1992). They had, “…more

positive self-respect and self-reliance: the reputation of social dependence…” (Locke, 1992). On
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the other hand, the old negro was the dependent and shy person accepting to be the servant for

white families and lacking self-actualization.

The characteristics of the new negro were the foundation of ideas in the Harlem

Renaissance writings. Langton Hughe also conveys Locke’s definition of the new negro in his

poem The Negro Speaks of the Rivers. Hugh portrays pride and confidence among blacks by

highlighting the traditions in the Congo, the Nile, and the Euphrates rivers. He says, “ I bathed

in the Euphrates when the dawns were young…I built my hut near the Congo, and it lulled me to

sleep… I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.” (Hughes, 1987). Therefore,

these words hold pride in him as he traces to his black culture. Hughes holds that the black

community had an intense desire for development in different aspects of life. One can also learn

that Hughe was optimistic about the relations of race in America as it was during this time that

racial discrimination had was high and compromised the intellectual, political, and social growth

of black Americans. Similarly, the new negro advocated for black awareness and portrayed self-

reliance and self-respect, thereby having the desire to explore their ethnic heritage. Blacks

changed their perception of various aspects of life as they rekindled their pride to overcome the

challenges of racial discrimination, thereby experiencing intense cultural growth.

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References

Hughes, L. (1987). The Negro Speaks of Rivers. Congress of Racial Equality.

Locke, A. (1992). The New Negro. 1925. Ed. Arnold Rampersad. New York: Simon.