The figure of the outcast surrounds everyone, no matter where people are it will always be there. Within real life, the people we encounter to literature, media and art. These are things that just cannot change and sometimes, the outcast is bounded by conflict. Their history, their family, and where they are from are seemingly erased from society. The figure of the outcast is represented in ‘Indian Names,’ by Lydia Huntley Sigourney and ‘The Slave Woman,’ by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper.
Sigourney’s ‘Indian Names’ begins with the quote, “how can the red men be forgotten, while so many of our states...are...stamped by names of their giving?”. Right in the beginning, the intention of the poem is revealed: to be a reminder of the heritage and …show more content…
The speaker says, “Think ye the Eternal’s ear is deaf?/ His sleepless vision dim?/ Think ye the soul’s blood may not cry from that far land to him?”. Here she is letting the reader know that God has seen and heard all of the violence that was done against the Indians. The poem is a remark of the durability of native-americans despite the United States continuing forced removal of Indians from across the continent, “comment(ing) on the tragic loss of native people whose names live on,” (Chatton, P84).Sigourney's beliefs appeared to fuel her concern, this was definitely unusual in the past as it was about white treatment of Native Americans. There are many works on Native American history where she treats whites' conduct as a violation of Christian …show more content…
Harper describes the mother trying to hide her son who is also clinging to her for safety, “Her boy clings to her side/ And in her kyrtle vainly tries/ His trembling form to hide”. She describes the fear the child must feel, which is easily relatable to that everyone would hide behind their mothers in fear at some point as a child. The phrase “He is not hers,” is repeated three times and emphasizes the point that although the mother's “blood / is coursing through his veins,” the boy does not belong to the mother, but to the slavemaster, who would "rudely tear apart" this family by selling away the child. It is not natural for children to be torn from their mothers, and it will never be natural to be a
Sigourney’s ‘Indian Names’ begins with the quote, “how can the red men be forgotten, while so many of our states...are...stamped by names of their giving?”. Right in the beginning, the intention of the poem is revealed: to be a reminder of the heritage and …show more content…
The speaker says, “Think ye the Eternal’s ear is deaf?/ His sleepless vision dim?/ Think ye the soul’s blood may not cry from that far land to him?”. Here she is letting the reader know that God has seen and heard all of the violence that was done against the Indians. The poem is a remark of the durability of native-americans despite the United States continuing forced removal of Indians from across the continent, “comment(ing) on the tragic loss of native people whose names live on,” (Chatton, P84).Sigourney's beliefs appeared to fuel her concern, this was definitely unusual in the past as it was about white treatment of Native Americans. There are many works on Native American history where she treats whites' conduct as a violation of Christian …show more content…
Harper describes the mother trying to hide her son who is also clinging to her for safety, “Her boy clings to her side/ And in her kyrtle vainly tries/ His trembling form to hide”. She describes the fear the child must feel, which is easily relatable to that everyone would hide behind their mothers in fear at some point as a child. The phrase “He is not hers,” is repeated three times and emphasizes the point that although the mother's “blood / is coursing through his veins,” the boy does not belong to the mother, but to the slavemaster, who would "rudely tear apart" this family by selling away the child. It is not natural for children to be torn from their mothers, and it will never be natural to be a