Read this excerpt from
“we wear the mask" by paul laurence dunbar and answer the question that follows:
we wear the mask that grins and lies,
it hides our cheeks and shades our eyes, –
this debt we pay to human guile,
with torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
and mouth with myriad subtleties.
why should the world be over-wise,
in counting all our tears and sighs?
nay, let them only see us, while
we wear the mask.
we smile, but, ogreat christ, our cries
to thee from tortured souls arise.
we sing, but on the clay is vile
beneath our feet, and long the mile;
but let the world dream otherwise,
we wear the mask!
what effect does the poet achieve by repeating the phrase, “we wear the mask” throughout the poem? complete the sentences to answer the question.
in the poem “we wear the mask,” paul laurence dunbar voices his repressed anger and frustration toward american society. he repeats the title phrase three times in the poem, using the words mask and we to show that the first use of the phrase is matter-of-fact. in the second stanza, the statement is followed by a period, which shows resignation. however, at the end of the poem, dunbar almost shouts the phrase defiantly. the mask seems to become something he wears proudly. through this gradual emphasis on the phrase, dunbar could be implying that
blank one
a) he is voicing feelings shared by all humans regardless of race
b) he is speaking about a common experience that the african american community shares
c) every individual experiences some kind of alienation, though their experiences may differ
d) human survival depends on deception, hypocrisy, and lying
blank two
a) people can triumph over suffering by accepting their circumstances
b) people can protect themselves from being hurt by hiding their true self from the outside world
c) african american people can survive bad situations only by being defiant
d) african americans used the “mask” to hide their suffering and gain a kind of victory against society
e) african americans used the “mask” to hide their suffering and gain a kind of victory against society