my parents and dreaming black boy essay

• May 14, 2020

CSEC English B: Dreaming Black Boy by James Berry Analysis

Updated: Jan 11, 2021

Dreaming Black Boy

James Berry

I wish my teacher’s eyes wouldn’t go past me today. Wish he’d know it’s okay to hug me when I kick a goal. Wish I myself wouldn’t hold back when answer comes. I’m no woodchopper now like all ancestors. I wish I could be educated to the best of tune up, and earn good money and not sink to lick boots. I wish I could go on every crisscross way of the globe and no persons or powers or hotel keepers would make it a waste. I wish life wouldn’t spend me out opposing. Wish same way creation would have me stand it would have me stretch, and hold high, my voice Paul Robeson’s, my inside eye a sun. Nobody wants to say hello to nasty answers. I wish torch throwers of night would burn lights for decent times. Wish plotters in pyjamas would pray for themselves. Wish people wouldn’t talk as if I dropped from Mars. I wish only boys were scared behind bravados, for I could suffer. I could suffer a big big lot. I wish nobody would want to earn the terrible burden I can suffer.

The persona is a young black male wishing for things he should have already been guaranteed for being a human. He has suffered great racial discrimination throughout his life, and this has affected him to the point where he isn't as bold as he should be. He knows that he is different from his enslaved ancestors, but he feels still trapped by the prejudice he has to bear. He wants to travel the world and be educated, rather than having to do demeaning jobs to get by. He wishes to be like the revolutionary Paul Robeson, whom he idolizes. This boy has suffered through seeing members of the Ku Klux Klan discriminating against and lynching black people like him, and he hopes that no one else has to bear this terrible burden he does. The speaker’s tone is one of wistfulness, subdued optimism, restrained anger, sadness and despair. Like the attitude of the black boy, the atmosphere of the poem is one of despair, sadness and deep suffering.

" I wish my teacher’s eyes wouldn’t go past me today. Wish he’d know it’s okay to hug me when I kick a goal."

This boy is ignored by his teacher, evidently due to his race. He wants to be recognized for his achievements in the same way the other students in his class are, but his teacher does not acknowledge him.

"Wish I myself wouldn’t hold back when answer comes. I’m no woodchopper now like all ancestors."

The persona confirms how he feels-voiceless and powerless. He holds back even when he knows the answer, showing that his confidence has been undermined due to constant prejudice. He knows that it doesn't make sense for him to not be bold, as, unlike his ancestors, he is free.

"I wish I could be educated to the best of tune up"

The boy wants to receive the best possible education. He uses a metaphor here to compare education to 'tune up,' as in how a car is well-serviced (or tuned) or how an instrument has been tuned to play the perfect notes.

"and earn good money and not sink to lick boots."

He doesn't want to become the stereotype of that era, of blacks only being meant for menial tasks. He is able to think critically, and he hopes not to be relegated to being a proverbial ' hewer of wood and drawer of water,' or spit shoe-shiner. He doesn't want to simply be subservient and servile in order to get by.

" I wish I could go on every crisscross way of the globe and no persons or powers or hotel keepers would make it a waste."

He wishes to travel the globe without the restraints of discrimination. He longs for unrestricted access to places where people and institutions do not discriminate against him because his skin is black.

" I wish life wouldn’t spend me out opposing."

In this personification , 'life' is said to spend the boy out, as in exhaust him completely. He doesn't want to spend his whole life on the defensive, constantly having to fight against discrimination and assault.

"Wish same way creation would have me stand it would have me stretch, and hold high, my voice Paul Robeson’s, my inside eye a sun."

He personifies creation here to be a sort of entity that controls his life. He wants 'creation,' in the same way it gave him the ability to withstand prejudice, it would give him the ability to grow internally, to have dignity- to 'stretch' beyond the limits society has defined for him. The persona dreams of having Paul Robeson’s voice as his own. This alludes to Paul Robeson, an African American icon known for his deep, distinctive voice. He was a Renaissance Man who epitomized black manhood as a star athlete singer, actor, lawyer, and human right activist. He wants to be like Robeson, and be as influential as him as well.

He wants his 'inside eye' to be a 'sun,' meaning that he wants his spirit and brilliance to be a light that all people can see.

"Nobody wants to say hello to nasty answers."

This line seems sort of out of place, but it shows the persona's realization that being exceptional is meaningless if people continue to be repulsed by him.

"I wish torch throwers of night would burn lights for decent times. Wish plotters in pyjamas would pray for themselves."

These lines allude to the Ku Klux Klan, a group of white supremacists who would lynch and torment black people. They did this under the guise of religion. The persona is highlighting their hypocrisy, as they hurt others, instead of praying for their own salvation at night.

" Wish people wouldn’t talk as if I dropped from Mars."

The persona wishes that his differences wouldn't be highlighted to seem as though he doesn't belong on this planet. He feels ostracized, as though he doesn't have the same permission to live in society- like he was born on Mars.

"I wish only boys were scared behind bravados, for I could suffer. I could suffer a big big lot. I wish nobody would want to earn the terrible burden I can suffer."

The persona wishes that only children were scared behind pretenses of valor- but he knows that even though adults display brave facades to the world, they are equally as scared. So, they are just as afraid and unable to oppose, and he cannot look to them for protection from the forces that plague him.

The word ‘suffer’ is repeated three times in this final stanza. Being a black boy is apparently synonymous with being afraid and suffering. He wishes that with adulthood things would change, but from what he has seen, he knows that is not true. He hopes that no one else will have to suffer through what he must suffer through because of the colour of their skin.

*'Wish' is repeated 12 times throughout the poem to reinforce the persona's mood of longing.

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Dreaming Black Boy

Dreaming black boy lyrics.

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James Berry (b. 1924) spent his childhood in a village in Jamaica, before working in the United States. He settled in Britain in 1948 where he has remained ever since. One of the first black writers in Britain to achieve wider recognition, Berry rose to prominence in 1981 when he won the National Poetry Competition.

The duality within Berry’s work highlights the rich love he bears his home country, Jamaica, while using it as a backdrop to his poetic setting while bringing to light to effects and lasting impression of oppression and colonialism

However, the overriding tone of Berry’s poetry is one of celebration. Without denying the hurt of the colonial experience, he chooses to defy prejudice choosing instead to emphasis, the unity of cultures.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was a leader of the Civil Rights movement in the U.S.A. during the 1950’s and 1960’s.

He had a dream that was memorialized in a famous speech. Among thethings he dreamt was that his little children “will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.”

This is an interesting allusion considering that the poem’s main concern is the dreaming of a young black boy in the time of civil unrest and rising black equality. The mention of a young boy’s death, Emmett Till in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s speech held an interesting impact on the author that he incorporated the dreams into a young boy around that age as the persona.

Penn’s Learning Center

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

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Think and Write for CSEC English A and B

Resource materials for teachers and students, dreaming black boy.

James Berry

I wish my teacher’s eyes wouldn’t

go past me today. Wish he’d know

it’s okay to hug me when I kick

a goal. Wish I myself wouldn’t hold back when answer comes.

I’m no woodchopper now

like all ancestors.

I wish I could be educated

to the best of tune up, and earn

good money and not sink to lick

boots. I wish I could go on every

crisscross way of the globe

and no persons or powers or

hotel keepers would make it a waste.

I wish life wouldn’t spend me out

opposing. Wish same way creation

would have me stand it would have

me stretch, and hold high, my voice

Paul Robeson’s, my inside eye

a sun. Nobody wants to say

hello to nasty answers.

I wish torch throwers of night

would burn lights for decent times.

Wish plotters in pyjamas would pray

for themselves. Wish people wouldn’t

talk as if I dropped from Mars.

I wish only boys were scared

behind bravados, for I could suffer.

I could suffer a big big lot.

I wish nobody would want to earn

the terrible burden I can suffer.

The persona is a young black male who wishes for the things he should have been given because he is a human. He suffers great racial discrimination throughout his life, and this has affected him to the point where he withdraws into himself. He is not as bold as he should be. But he is aware of that he is different from his enslaved ancestors. Still, he feels still trapped by the prejudice he must face. He wants to travel the world and be educated, rather than having to do demeaning jobs to get by. He wishes to be like the revolutionary Paul Robeson. The boy remembers the stories of the Ku Klux Klan discriminating against and lynching black people like him. He hopes that no one else must bear this terrible burden he does.

Wistfulness,

Subdued optimism,

Restrained anger,

Sadness, and

Sadness and

Deep suffering.

“I wish my teacher’s eyes wouldn’t go past me today. Wish he’d know it’s okay to hug me when I kick a goal.”

The teacher ignores the boy because of his race. But the boy hopes that the teacher would acknowledge him today. He wishes for recognition when he succeeds.

“Wish I myself wouldn’t hold back when answer comes. I’m no woodchopper now like all ancestors.”

The persona feels voiceless as well as powerless and he does not answer the questions even when he knows the answers. This suggests that his confidence is low because of the constant moments of prejudice. He knows that it does not make sense for him to not be bold because he is free.

“I wish I could be educated to the best of tune up”

The boy wants to receive the best education. He uses the metaphor to compare education to ‘tune up.’ This is the same as having a car being “tuned up” or serviced for it to run smoothly.

“and earn good money and not sink to lick boots.”

This historical allusion is important because his forefathers have suffered through menial tasks that were comparable to licking boots. The persona does not want this for his future, and he wants to break the stereotype of that era where blacks were only meant for menial tasks. He thinks critically, and he hopes not to be demoted to being a

proverbial ‘hewer of wood and drawer of water,’ or spit shoe-shiner. He does not want to be compliant and submissive to get by.

“I wish I could go on every crisscross way of the globe and no persons or powers, or hotel keepers would make it a waste.”

He wishes to travel the globe without the restraints of discrimination.

“I wish life wouldn’t spend me out opposing.”

In this personification, ‘life’ is said to exhaust the boy. He does not want to live his whole life trying to win against discrimination and assault.

“Wish same way creation would have me stand it would have me stretch, and hold high, my voice Paul Robeson’s, my inside eye a sun.”

The persona uses personification here as an entity that controls his life. He wants ‘creation,’ in the way that it gives him the ability to deal with the prejudice he faces. He believes that this would give him the ability to develop internal strength and have the dignity that would allow him to move beyond societal limits and dictations. The persona dreams that he could have Paul Robeson’s voice as his own. He alludes to Paul Robeson, an African American icon known for his deep, distinctive voice and success as a star athlete singer, actor, lawyer, and human right activist. He wants his ‘inside eye’ to be a ‘sun,’ meaning that he wants his spirit and brilliance to be a light for others.

“Nobody wants to say hello to nasty answers.”

The line shows that the persona realizes that being an exceptional person is meaningless if people continue to be disgusted by him.

“I wish torch throwers of night would burn lights for decent times. Wish plotters in pyjamas would pray for themselves.”

The persona uses historical allusion in his reference to the Ku Klux Klan. History shows that this group of white supremacists lynched and tormented black people in the past. They did this under the disguise of religion. The persona highlights their hypocrisy, as they hurt others, instead of praying for their own salvation at night.

“Wish people wouldn’t talk as if I dropped from Mars.”

The persona wishes that people would choose not to highlight his differences so that he feels as if he does not belong on this planet. He feels ostracized, as though he does not have the same permission to live in society or like he was born on Mars. While the line contains a very simple analysis, one could go further to explain that this not a physical desire to be on a physical plain but instead the line would suggest that the persona wishes that he would be recognized as an individual with a voice. He wishes that people would listen to what he has to say and not pretend that his opinions and views were not valid.

“I wish only boys were scared behind bravados, for I could suffer. I could suffer a big big lot. I wish nobody would want to earn the terrible burden I can suffer.”

The persona wishes that only children were scared behind the pretenses of bravery. Yet he understands that even adults pretend to be brave at times. But because adults are also afraid, he finds that these adults cannot offer the protection he needs as he faces prejudice in society. He believes that adults cannot oppose the prejudices. ‘Suffer’ is repeated three times in this final stanza for emphasis and for allowing the readers to become even mor3e sympathetic towards the persona. He is a black boy and blacks are often synonymous with being hardships, fear, and suffering. He hopes that no one else will have to suffer through what he must suffer through because of the colour of their skin. *’Wish’ is repeated constantly in the poem to reinforce the persona’s mood of longing.

Literary Devices

Repetition:

The repetition ‘I wish’ points to a longing or the desperation for the basic needs of life. The repetition gives credibility to the belief that the persona believe that his wishes are dreams and that these dreams might not become a reality.

Lines 6 and 7, historical allusion. The speaker alludes to slavery and the lack of control over one’s own life and destiny. There is reference to the persona’s feelings about his life and his lack of control over his life.

Lines 19 to 20 alludes to Paul Robeson. The persona wants to be like Robeson who is a black successful scholar.

Lines 22 to 25 alludes to the Klu Klux Klan and their burning of the crosses and wearing their white outfits.

oppression,

desire/dreams.

childhood experiences

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Dreaming Black Boy

by James Berry

I wish my teacher's eyes wouldn't

go past me today. Wish he'd know

it's okay to hug me when I kick

a goal. Wish I myself wouldn't

hold back when an answer comes.

I'm no woodchopper now

like all ancestor's.

I wish I could be educated

to the best of tune up, and earn

good money and not sink to lick

boots . I wish I could go on every

crisscross way of the globe

and no persons or powers or

hotel keepers would make it a waste.

I wish life wouldn't spend me out

opposing. Wish same way creation

would have me stand it would have me stretch, and hold high, my voice

Paul Robeson's , my inside eye

a sun. Nobody wants to say

hello to nasty answers.

I wish torch throwers of night

would burn lights for decent times.

Wish plotters in pyjamas would pray

for themselves. Wish people wouldn't

talk as if I dropped from Mars

I wish only boys were scared

behind bravados, for I could suffer.

I could suffer a big big lot.

I wish nobody would want to earn

the terrible burden I can suffer.

What is the poem about?

Identify all literary devices in the poem and comment on their effectiveness and use in the poem.

Identify the theme of the poem

Identify any important words or phrases in the poem and comment on their meaning

What is the mood of the poem?

What is the tone of the poem?

The poem is about a black boy who wishes that he could have regular things in life. Things such as a congratulatory hug, to be educated to the highest level and to travel without harassment. The persona yearns to stop fighting for the basic right to be successful and to rise above societal expectations.

LITERARY DEVICES

The constant repetition of the phrase ‘I wish’ points to a yearning, a desperation even, for the basic things that life has to offer. The repetition gives credence to the idea that the persona might believe that his wishes are actually dreams that might not come true.

Stanza 1, lines 6 and 7, alludes to slavery, the state of lacking control over one’s own life and destiny. The fact that reference is made to this hints to how the persona feels about his life. He does not feel as if he has control over it.

Stanza 3, lines 19 to 20, alludes to Paul Robeson, a black intellectual, who attained success despite difficult circumstances. The persona yearns to be like this person. He wants room to stretch intellectually.

Stanza 4, lines 22 to 25, alludes to the klu klux klan. Burning lights refers to the burning of crosses and the pyjamas alludes to their white outfits that look like pyjamas. The persona wants them to leave him alone, find something else to do other than make his life difficult by contributing to his wishes remaining in the realm of the dreams.

IMPORTANT WORDS / PHRASE

’not sink to lick boots’

This refers to the concept of being subservient. To have no choice but to kowtow to people in order to get ahead.

‘Inside eye a sun’

This refers to the persona’s mind. He wants to show how intelligent he is without fear. He wants his mind to be a sun. Sun represents brightness and light, that is how he wants his intelligence to shine.

The tone/mood of the poem is one of sadness. The persona is thinking about how he is treated and he reacts to this in a sad way. He keeps wishing that things were different.

THEMATIC CATEGORY

desire/dreams

childhood experiences

Dreaming Black Boy Poem by James Berry Summary, Notes and Line by Line Explanation in English

Introduction.

The poem �Dreaming Black Boy� is written by the poet James Berry. In the poem, the poet persona is a black man who has suffered racial discrimination and lack of opportunities due to his skin color. The man wishes to live a life full of possibilities and learning. He wants to receive all the necessities that should have been given to him for being a human being but were kept from him due to his race.

About the poet

The poem is divided into five stanzas, each varying in length. The stanzas consist of five to seven lines.

The first stanza shows how the boy is ignored by his teachers in class because of his skin color. He wants attention and recognition for his participation. He wants recognition when he does well and scores a goal for the team. He wants his coach to hug him like he hugs other students for their achievements. In the next lines, the persona talks about how all of this has made him lose confidence in himself and now he second-guesses himself. He no longer wants to hold himself back in class and proudly give his answers. He understands that the times have changed from the past. He is no longer a slave like his ancestors. He is free but he still does not get to fully expertise his freedom.

The persona wants the best possible education for himself. He compares himself to a machine and wants to be �tuned up� to perform at his full potential. He wants good job opportunities that will allow him to earn a good salary and thus live a good life. He does not want to work demeaning and menial jobs that would make him �sink to lick boots�. He wishes to travel the globe and go anywhere without having to worry about admittance. He does not want restrictions and discrimination by global institutions and people.

He wishes that he would not have to live his whole life being opposed and oppressed. He wants a life that would allow him to stand straight, stretch his arms and hold his voice high like Paul Robeson. He does not even wish to say hello to people because he knows they will say something nasty to him.

The speaker says that he wishes that people who discriminated against the black community would not do so and would rather pray for their own salvation. He does not want people to react as if he is an extra-terrestrial and not a human being.

This stanza makes a reference to the KKK, Ku Klux Klan, and calls them �torch throwers�. KKK is a group white supermacists. This is a reference to how the KKK would persecute and lynch black people. The persona wishes that they would stop doing so and look at their actions. He calls them out on their hypocrisy as they do all of this under the guise of religions and says that they should rather pray for their own salvation. The persona doesn�t want people to react as if he was a different being altogether. He wants them to stop acting like he is from Mars and does it belong in this society.

The speaker presents his last wish and talks about how adults were actually brave. But they hide behind the fake masks of bravado while being scared inside like little boys. The speaker can not look up to them for protection because they themselves are scared to oppose the discrimination they face. In the end, he leaves the reader with his final wish that no one has to suffer the way he is suffering. This is a noble wish to save other black people from being discriminated against.

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