Poetry of Dennis Brutus, Nikki Essay

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In "An Agony. As Now," the poet is looking inside himself to find answers. The poem reads as a piece of literature that reveals the torment of the speaker. The poet is experiencing torment, among other things and, at times, we might even think he is past the brink of sanity. This mood is captured with incomplete sentences and awkward line breaks. The poet dissociates himself from the man in the mirror, which is our first clue that he might be unstable. It is not until later in the poem do we discover that the poet is speaking to himself. His conversation might seem aimless but he does at arrive at a conclusion after some examination. The speaker talks to himself, realizing that he has abandoned his soul. He lives in hate and pain where "the mind / silver spiraled whirled against the / sun, higher than even old men thought / God would be" (Baraka 23-6). At this point, we see that the poet is attempting to define the source of his pain and hate in a world that he does not understand. The search is painful in that it takes the poet on a journey that only brings him back to pain. As the poet looks for an answer, he only sees men with:

Their robes blown. Their bowls empty. They chant at my heels, not at yours.) Flesh or soul, as corrupt. Where the answer moves too quickly.

Where the God is a sef, after all. (33-7)

Here we see that the search only leads to more pain and suffering because the poet fails to find any comfort in the notion of God. The cycle of torment is repeated and the poet does not reach any conclusions worth noting, as in the final lines he admits that he has "no feeling" (42) and the love given "burns the thing / inside it" (44-5).

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The poem concludes with the poet left with nothing to do but scream.

The purpose of art is to enlighten the individual and encourage growth. Many artists will claim that they do not choose their art but their art chooses them. Considering thee two aspects of art, we can know that it is two-fold for the artist and the audience that enjoys it. In addition, we can never know the full extent of art because it is universal regardless from whom it comes. We like to think of art as an escape from life but in reality, art is very much grounded in the human experience. Dennis Brutus, Nikki Giovanni, June Jordan, and Amiri Baraka are poets whose work demonstrate how this is true. While not all of us can know what any of these poets experienced or what caused them to pen these poems, we can read them and at least try to relate on some level. For them art imitates life and through them, we can know a little bit more about their lives and experiences. Whether it is the death of a friend, the feeling of isolation in a world gone wrong, or the pride associated with one's heritage, we understand the experience more when the poet has taken the time to express it from the heart.

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