Dudley Randall
Background
Information
·
Published his first
poem at age 13.
·
Made visits around the world which inspired many of his poems.
·
The publication of “Ballad of Birmingham” established a good reputation
for African American Poets and a platform for those who had not begun.
·
The bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church was the sole
influence for the “Ballad of Birmingham.”
·
Randall was influenced by
the work of Jean Toomer and Countee Cullen.
· His many trips also influenced many of Randall’s works.
Well-Known Works
"Ballad of Birmingham"
"A Poet is not a Jukebox"
"Booker T. and W.E.B."
"The Profile on the Pillow"
“Ballad of
Birmingham”
"Mother dear, may I go downtown
Instead of out to play,
And
march the streets of Birmingham
In a Freedom March today?"
"No, baby, no, you may not
go,
For the dogs are fierce and wild,
And clubs and hoses, guns and
jails
Aren't good for a little child."
"But, mother, I won't be
alone.
Other children will go with me,
And march the streets of
Birmingham
To make our country free."
"No, baby, no, you may not
go,
For I fear those guns will fire.
But you may go to church
instead
And sing in the children's choir."
She has combed and brushed her
night-dark hair,
And bathed rose petal sweet,
And drawn white gloves on
her small brown hands,
And white shoes on her feet.
The mother smiled to know that
her child
Was in the sacred place,
But that smile was the last smile
To
come upon her face.
For when she heard the
explosion,
Her eyes grew wet and wild.
She raced through the streets of
Birmingham
Calling for her child.
She clawed through bits of glass
and brick,
Then lifted out a shoe.
"O, here's the shoe my baby
wore,
But, baby, where are you?"
"Mother dear, may I go
downtown
XXXXXXXXXX = Rhyme Scheme
(b,d)
Instead of out to
play,
And
march the streets of Birmingham
= Stanza
In a Freedom March today?"
"No, baby, no, you may not go,
= Verse
For the dogs are fierce and wild,
And
clubs and hoses, guns and jails
XXXXXXXXXX = Visual Imagery
Aren't good for a
little child."
"But, mother, I won't be alone.
XXXXXXXXXX = Olfactory Imagery
Other children
will go with me,
And
march the streets of Birmingham
XXXXXXXXXX = Irony
To make our country free."
"No, baby, no, you may not go,
XXXXXXXXXX =
Symbol
For I fear those guns will fire.
But
you may go to church instead
And sing in the children's choir."
She has combed and brushed her night-dark hair,
And bathed rose petal sweet,
And drawn white gloves on her
small brown hands,
And white shoes on her feet.
The mother smiled to know that her child
Was in the sacred
place,
But that smile
was the last smile
To come upon her face.
For when she heard the explosion,
Her eyes grew wet and
wild.
She
raced through the streets of Birmingham
Calling for her child.
She clawed through bits of glass and brick,
Then lifted
out a shoe.
"O,
here's the shoe my baby wore,
But, baby, where are you?"
Blocking
“Mom, can I go downtown
Instead of going out to play,
To march in the streets of Birmingham
In the Freedom March today?”
“No my child you may not go,
Because the dogs are fierce and wild,
Because clubs, hoses, guns, and jails
Are not meant for little children.”
“But I won’t be alone Mom.
Other kids will be there,
To march the streets of Birmingham,
Trying to make our country free from
racism.”
“No my child you may not go,
For I fear you will get shot.
But you may go to church instead
And sing in the children’s choir.”
She has combed and brushed he dark hair,
And bathed,
And put on white gloves on her small hands,
And white shoes on her feet.
The mother was happy to know her child
Was in a safe place,
But that smile was the last
To come on her face.
When she heard the church explode,
She cried and started to look for her child.
She ran through the streets of Birmingham
Yelling for her child.
She dug through the glass and brick,
Then found a shoe.
“Oh, her is my child’s shoe,
But where is my child?”
Click here for works cited page