The poet writes with an intent, but very still, voice illustrating how meaningless the event was. Readers are presented with the image of a mother only wanting to protect her child but falling short thanks to the ruthlessness of her fellow men. The child, as in Hughes' poem, represents a type of innocence that will not last long in this world. "Ballad of Birmingham," is also like "Dream Boogie" in

Ballad Birmingham An explication of poem "Ballad of Birmingham" by Dudley Randall An explication of poem "Ballad Birmingham" by Dudley Randall The current essay is an explication of the poem "Ballad of Birmingham" by Dudley Randall. Dudley wrote this poem in 1965 after reflecting on the incident of Ballad Birmingham Church dynamite that occurred on September 15, 1963. The poem is in context of African-American freedom movement of 1960s when African-Americans were fighting

"O, here's the shoe my baby wore, But, baby, where are you?" (25-8) These images become more powerful when expressed through the mother's eyes. The tone of this poem is important because it commands attention and respect without screaming and demanding righteousness. The daughter represents the ideals behind the civil rights movement and the poem's lullaby-like quality forces readers to actually listen to what the poet is saying. For example, we are forewarned

Speech to the Young. Speech to the Progress-Toward. Say to them, say to the down-keepers, the sun-slappers, the self-soilers, the harmony-hushers, "even if you are not ready for day it cannot always be night." You will be right. For that is the hard home-run. Live not for battles won. Live not for the-end-of-the-song. Live in the along. In the 1940s and 1950s, Gwendolin Brooks was one of the few black poets and writers to become part of the white literary