Comparison and contrast two poems by the same author

Name Professor Course Date Comparison and Contrast Overview of the Poems It is commonly said that literally writers often draw their materials from the context of the communities in which they live. In line with this, the essay below looks at two poems written by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. The comparison and contrast of the poems are as stated below. The first poem is entitled "The Slave Auction." In this poem, Ellen tells about the cruel manner in which the slaves were ripped from their communities and sold off as slaves to their masters. Through a very clear account, Ellen (1) describes the horror witnessed by women as their children were ripped from their bosoms to be sold off to slavery. It explains the anguish seen on the eyes of the children, their parents and relatives as they were ripped apart with such cruelty. The discriminatory nature of this exercise was seen through the fact that the people faced this cruelty due to the color of their skin. In the second poem, "Bury Me in a Free Land", Ellen (1) describes a slave pleading not to be buried in the slave land. Through the account, the reader realizes that the persona did not desire much in his death, but did not want to be buried on a land where he would hear the tribulations of fellow slave men. He argues that he could not rest well in his grave if he was aware that there were slaves who were mauled by bloodhounds each day where the masters` lashes would be driven to the flesh of the slaves, and where young girls would suffer at the hands of the cruel masters. In order to avoid being haunted by such memories, the persona vehemently pleads that he should not be buried in the land of slaves. All he needs is to be buried in afree land. Comparison Besides sharing the author, the poems also have many similarities as follows. Both poems have the same theme. All of them revolve around slavery and the cruel manner in which this was carried out. Through these accounts, the reader gets to understand that the slaves did not have a happy life, right from the time of capture to the time they were sold off to their masters, and even to the time of their deaths. In the first poem, he describes how the captors treated the slaves with such cruelty, whipping them, ripping the families apart and completely severing the family ties. From these accounts, the reader can also allude to the origin of Harper, putting her in...