Contrast life philosophy of Maya Angelou and Macbeth. Literature Essay

Read Act V of Macbeth. Now revisit the words of Macbeth just before confronting his tragic fate in Act V.

Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day

To the last syllable of recorded time,

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more. It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing. (5.5.22-31)

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Now read the words of Maya Angelou.

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Still I Rise

Maya Angelou

You may write me down in history

With your bitter, twisted lies,

You may trod me in the dirt

But still, like dust, I rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?

Why are you beset with gloom?

Cause I walk like I've got oil wells

Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and suns,

With the certainty of tides,

Just like hopes, springing high,

Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken?

Bowed head and lowered eyes?

Shoulders falling down like teardrops,

Weakened by my soulful cries.

You may shoot me with your words,

You may cut me with your eyes.

You may kill me with your fatefulness,

But still, like air, I'll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you?

Does it come as a surprise

That I dance like I've got diamonds

At the meeting of my thighs?

Out of the huts of history's shame

I rise

Up from a past that's rooted in pain

I rise

I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,

Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear

I rise

Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear

I rise

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,

I am the dream and the hope of the slave,

I rise...I rise...I rise.

1. Contrast the life philosophy of Maya Angelou and Macbeth.

How are the speakers' views different?

2. How are the speakers' attitudes different?

3.What effect has history had on each speaker?

4.What does each speaker 's point of view offer the reader?

*5.Be sure to quote from the text of each speaker to build a strong case for your opinions.*

Be sure you have effectively addressed #5 (20 points)

Assessment areas:

____ Thoughtful central idea _____Engaging/specific details

____ Expressed in the positive active voice, minimizing “ands”

____Coherent organization _____Careful proofreading