Paul Laurence Dunbar‘s ”The Cornstalk Fiddle”

In history this month we read Booker T. Washington's famous "Atlanta Exposition Speech" and selections from his autobiography UP FROM SLAVERY to show the context. In reciprocity, then, the poetry of Paul Lawrence Dunbar contextualizes Washington's words, and is in turn contextualized by them.

Dunbar's delightful poem, "The Cornstalk Fiddle," must warm the hearts  of country folk everywhere, with its recall of inventive genius in "making do" with what nature provides in order to share in the communal joys of life and love. One can almost feel the cool autumn evening and the excitement of potential love moving in time to the cornstalk fiddle, evoked by these homespun verses.

If you enjoy our content, consider donating through PayPal to romanschapter5@comcast.net

 

https://www.youtube.com/c/TheChristianAtheist/featured

https://www.facebook.com/JnJWiseWords

https://wisewordsforyouroccasion.wordpress.com

 

#poem #poetry #verse #literature #aestheticliterature #aesthetic #rhythmic #phonaesthetics #soundsymbolism #metre #prosaic #literarycomposition #poet #ambiguity #symbolism #irony #poeticdiction #muse #prosody #meter #metricalpatterns #rhymescheme #dunbar #pauldunbar #paullaurencedunbar #blackexperience #slavery #postslavery #dissimulation #thecornstalkfiddle #countryfolk #communaljoys #life #love