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We began reading and discussing the Middle Passage in class. Please take a moment to review these two poems about the Middle Passage.
Nikki Giovanni - Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea (We're Going to Mars)
Sonia Sanchez - Middle Passage
Our readings from The African American Odyssey provided an historical perspective on the Middle Passage. These two poems provided interpretations of the Middle Passage.
Please take a moment to consider how the poems enhanced your reading and previous knowledge about the Middle Passage. How is your understanding of the Middle Passaged changed? Why? Use the comments box below.
I don't know if these poems changed my understanding of the Middle Passage, as it has always been clear to me the deplorable and unfathomable conditions that were endured. However, I think when I normally discuss the Middle Passage, it's just that - a scholarly discussion which doesn't really include examining the psychological effects on enslaved Africans. Sonia Sanchez's poem in particular introduced a space for me to think about each of the millions of commodified bodies shipped across the ocean. It expressed the trauma that had to have been inflicted on each mind - man, woman, boy, girl - and the insanity that must have developed from such a traumatic and recurring experience for the black race.
ReplyDeleteNeither of these poems enhanced my knowledge about the middle passage. However, these poems enhanced my knowledge about slavery in general. I never really realized that slave women were pressured -forced- to have babies constantly. In Sanchez's poem she used the phrase 'every nine months' in a repetitive manner to explain that these women were constantly getting pregnant for the slave owners benefit. The female slaves were not only exploited for their labor, but also for their bodies. This information changed how I viewed the lives of women slaves.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, my understanding was not greatly impacted by these poems. The first poem was a poem I am accustomed to hearing. The second poem lost me and was really difficult for me to understand. Even though Mrs. Sanchez used emphasis on many words she used throughout her poem to express rememory. Although I did gain knowledge regarding women during the Middle Passage, about how women were constantly pregnant until their bodies could not handle it anymore.
ReplyDeleteThe only knowledge I gained during the videos was the hardships of women during the middle passage. I was confuse on what Mrs. Sanchez was trying to hit on outside of her repetition of "nine months". During the middle passage not only were women used fo labor but to bear children. The more children a slave owner might have, the better his business.
ReplyDelete