Comparing Still I Rise and No Problem Essay

The two poems No problem and Still I Rise talks about how the racial abuse they get because of slavery. Both poets deliver a message about how proud of there image and the culture. I am going to start off talking about Angelous Still I Rise. Still I Rise have a stronger view and more intensive as it is about the hardships that African Americans faced and how even thought they were abused and tossed aside, they rose from the ground they was thrown to.

The language she used tells that she has a positive attitude and with using Standard English and not only for her but she tells on behalf of all black womens. The way she expressed that is by using devices such as metaphors and similes as well as other literary devices to convey to the reader the depth of her sentiment in the poem. For similes she used like that I dance Like Ive got diamonds this quote shows that she is proud of her sexuality. There are also other similes she used like But still, Like dust, Ill rise, Just like moons and like suns, Cause I walk like Ive got oil wells, Shoulders falling down like teardrops.

These quotes show great comparison about her and this kind of comparison are very strong because it gives the readers of the ideas Angelous trying to show. For metaphors she uses quotes like trod me in the very dirt, shoot me with your words, cut me with your eyes, kill me with your hatefulness, huts of historys shame.

These metaphors she used designate one thing to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison which trying to indicate how the white people treat her.

The other literacy devices she uses are repetition like for example you may, I rise, Just like. She uses this device to show aggressive feelings as she connects harsh words such as shoot, cut and kill so the reader can picture the event as how she is delivering such phrases in a most aggressive way.

Also, when I kept on reading the poem, I felt like this poem had a little one, two beat to it as if its creating a rhythm which is very consistent especially with this poem. As here is a paragraph from the poem did you want to see me broken? Bowed head and lowered eyes?, Shoulders falling down like teardrops weakened by my soulful cries. This shows that there are beats and rhythm into the poem.

With using these devices she delivered the message that no matter how much you might try to hurt her she will rise and she will defy you and she will continue to rise.

This is an inspirational poem to read and to understand the struggle that she reflects in her work and the grace with which she seems to convey her pain and anger while bringing awareness to her readers.

Now I am going to talk about Zephaniahs No Problem. No Problem is more humorous as he talks about people stereotyping his image and also like Angelous, he talks about racism but the main things hes talks about is that he wants a proper relationship with people but the only thing that get in his way is his colour.

The language he used tells us that he is expressing it in a calm and amusing way but he uses a very colloquial dialect English as hes mother tongue is Caribbean. He tells the poem in first person as he often says I am not de problem, I am born academic, If yu give I a chance. He uses this to become the voice of all black people similar to Angelous.

The devices he use are metaphors but not quite a lot compared to Angelous Still I Rise as the only metaphor he uses is I have no chips on me shoulders. He also says how he is being stereotyping as he says Yu put me in a pigeon hole.

And like Angelou, He also uses repetitions as he uses words like I can, I am. He uses Pronouns like for example racist stunts, branded athletic. This shows that he substitutes nouns or noun phrases to show how he gets characterized by white people because of his appearance.

Just like Still I Rise, this poem also has the similar rhythm and has the one, two beat as for example Black is not de problem mother country get it right, an juss fe de record, Sum of me best friends are white.

Compared to Angelous, Zephaniah didnt use enough devices but the way he has expressed his poem, he used his own dialect accent to show how much he is proud of this and the proof of his identity.

Between the two poems, I would prefer No Problem to Still I Rise because I like reading poems with more humorous than passionate and also a fan of Benjamin Zephaniah. But Angelous poem was also good as she delivers her experience into words to the readers and making them feel the same pain that she went through.