I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Response

         "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou.  This poem is about the differences between a free bird that his not held down or  tied up and a caged bird that is restricted on where it can go and is locked inside a cage.  I think the poet is conveying the message that even if you start out as a caged bird, you can become free at some point in you life.  There isn't really a person speaking in this poem, it is more of a narrator.

         

         The poet uses the elements of repetition, rhyme, imagery, and rhythm. "A bird that stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage his wings are clipped and his feet are tied" this helps convey meaning because it shows you that a caged bird isn't very happy and is very restricted on what he can do, this line also shows that the caged bird knows that there is more to life than being trapped in a cage but he doesn't know what it is.  This poem might be talking about slavery because slaves don't know how being free feels but they know it exists, and the whites know how freedom feels but they don't know how being a slave feels.

         I like the imagery and rhythm in this poem because it makes it easier to understand the poem.  i also like how the poem conveys that the free bird doesnt know how being caged feels, and the caged bird knows how it feels but it doesnt know how freedom feels.