Birds have captivated writers for centuries; they can fly high through the air, and they can sing melodious tunes in a language incomprehensible to humans. Writers are intrigued by birds because humans are not able to fly or understand the birds’ songs. In “The Darkling Thrush,” by Thomas Hardy, “To A Waterfowl,” by William Cullen Bryant, The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, and “African Morning,” by Langston Hughes, the authors all use birds in a symbolic nature. In literature, birds represent outright freedom and hope; they are able to fly and sing, and they are completely unbound from the restrictions and complications put on by society. Birds are placed in direct contrast from oppressed characters because birds possess the freedom that
