1a. What "grins and lies"? What is paid "to human guile"?
2a. What does the speaker suggest is not counted by the world?
3a. From what kind of souls do the cries mentioned in the poem arise?
4a. For what is the mask a metaphor in the poem?
5a. Do you think the use of the mask is justified by the speaker?
1b. Who is the "we" mentioned in the poem? Who is the "them"? Does the speaker express a positive or negative attitude toward human duplicity?
2b. Why does the speaker suggest "Nay, let them only see us, while / We wear the mask"?
3b. Whom is the speaker addressing in the third stanza?
4b. Why do people wear the mask?
5b. Identify a character in film, literature, or on TV who wears a mask. From whom is the character trying to keep his feelings hidden? How successful is he or she? What do you think would happen if the character revealed his or her true feelings?
Speaker. For whom is the speaker speaking? How might your interpretation of the poem change if you decided that the speaker were speaking for the entire human race? Who, then, would be the "we"? Who would be the "them"?
Rhyme Scheme. Determine the rhyme scheme of each stanza. The rhyme scheme of the first stanza is given as an example.
We wear the mask that grins and lies, a It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes— a This debt we pay to human guile; b With torn and bleeding hearts we smile, b And mouth with myriad subtleties. a
Which rhyme is not exact? Which lines in each stanza do not rhyme with any other lines?
1. Imagine that you are the speaker. Write a journal entry describing what type of personality you aspire to display with your mask.
2. The poem says that the wearer of the mask has a tortured soul. Write a paragraph describing one scenario that results in suffering for the mask wearer.
3. The speaker says the wearer of the mask speaks with "myriad subtleties." Imagine that you wear the mask at work. Write a letter to your boss listing your common utterances and explaining what they really mean.
Working with Namers.Rewrite the following sentences, star (*) the namers and identify whether they function as subjects or objects. If a namer is an object, specify whether it is a direct object, object of a preposition, or object of an infinitive.
1. Paul Laurence Dunbar wrote novels, poems, and short stories.
2. Lyrics of Lowly Life made him famous.
3. Writing gave Dunbar a sense of personal satisfaction.
4. He liked to use African-American dialect to reflect realistic speech patterns.
5. His death at such a young age was tragic.
Using the Internet.Using the Internet, locate a poem by Dunbar that uses dialect. Then, on the following lines, rewrite the poem in standard English. Discuss which version of the poem is more powerful, and explain why.
