The Evils of the Persona in Walkers' I Said to Poetry'.
Within this poem poetry has a voice which is read as the id of the subconscious. Through the poem Walker uses a style of writing that is different from what her audience is seeing, tone, and also specific word usage. .
Alice Walkers' previous writing styles in "The life of the Grange Copeland- shows the transformation of writing where she uses sexual and racial relations within black communities. She also uses the connections between family and society. Another one of her big hits was the "Color Purple- where she writes about incest, sibling devotion, and blues music that unifies the thread in the lives of many characters. As you read "I said to Poetry- you notice a major difference in her styles of writing. This is a poem and more specifically it's a lyric poem. Although it is a narrative like her other works its purpose and meaning is different. The poem is strong with a meaning deeper than the obvious. It expresses the emotions and thoughts of the "I- character. Poetry itself is used as the persona of the poem. This imaginary person is wearing a mask which allows the "I- to address it and have a conversation with him. The persona is actually apart of the "I- but is also a separate voice with its own way of thinking. .
The "I- character is allowing him or herself to be nave so that they don't have to face the truth, which is they want to write. The "I- would rather remain blind to the truth and rather not admit to him or her-self that poetry is calling and "I- wants to answer. The "I- quickly realizes that there is no escaping destiny. .
There's no paper .
in the room, I said.
And that new pen I bought.
makes a funny noise.
.
Bullshit, said Poetry.
Bullshit, sad I. .
The poem is tapping into the subconscious of the "I- and by going so the author is now forcing the reader to think. As the reader we must look at our own lives and recognize the demons that we've put a mask over simply to communicate and discuss our fears.
