“I Am Offering this Poem”

“I Am Offering this Poem”

I am offering this poem to you,

since I have nothing else to give.

Keep it like a warm coat,

when winter comes to cover you,

or like a pair of thick socks

the cold cannot bite through,

I love you,

I have nothing else to give you,

so it is a pot full of yellow corn

to warm your belly in winter,

it is a scarf for your head, to wear

over your hair, to tie up around your face,

I love you,

Keep it, treasure this as you would

if you were lost, needing direction,

in the wilderness life becomes when mature;

and in the corner of your drawer,

tucked away like a cabin or hogan

in dense trees, come knocking,

and I will answer, give you directions,

and let you warm yourself by this fire,

rest by this fire, and make you feel safe,

I love you,

It’s all I have to give,

and all anyone needs to live,

and to go on living inside,

when the world outside 

no longer cares if you live or die;

remember,

I love you.

“Harlem”

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up

Like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore – 

And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?

Or crust and sugar over – 

Like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags

Like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Baca and Hughes, then read “I Am Offering this Poem” and “Harlem” twice, then write the speaker, audience, rhetorical situation, and tone of each poem.

A metaphor is a direct comparison of two things. List the metaphors Baca uses to describe his poem in “I Am Offering this Poem.” What do these metaphors mean: what does Baca seem to think poetry accomplishes?

Now think about why he chooses these particular images in his metaphors, and write who in particular (according to Baca) may benefit the most from poetry.

A simile is an indirect comparison of two things using “like” or “as.” List the similes Hughes uses in “Harlem.” What do these similes mean: what is Hughes trying to say happens to people whose dreams are prevented?

Now think about the title of the poem, and write how the meaning of these similes is reflected in the title: whose dreams have been squelched.