Sympathy

“Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar is a lyrical poem in first person, using the pronoun “I” to signal the direct point of view and perspective of the speaker. Dunbar develops the theme of The Psychological Reality of Racism through extended metaphor, nature imagery, and symbolism.

Dunbar frames his poem with the title “Sympathy.” In the Romantic-Era poetry that so influenced Dunbar and other American poets of the 19th century, sympathy is an identification with an Other, a connection that allows one to overcome the barriers that separate one individual from another, or of humans from the natural world. In selecting this title, Dunbar signals to the reader his connection to the Romantic poets and his belief that white readers could see Black Americans as peers through the lens of sympathy.

Dunbar introduces “the caged bird” (Line 1) as an extended metaphor (a detailed comparison of two unlike things) for Black Americans as they experience racism in the United States. He establishes the sorrowful tone of the poem with the word “alas” (Line 1). He further emphasizes the woeful, lonely existence of the caged bird and the oppressed Black American by