Introduction
Black people in the South following the Civil War were not necessarily any better off as freemen than they were as slaves. Although they had gained rights through the federal government, local governments and daily realities kept them suppressed and in abject poverty. While the rest of the world called them free, their experience told them they remained severely restricted within a class of slaves.
Paul Lawrence Dunbar’s poem “Ante-bellum Sermon” attempts to provide them with hope logically giving a Biblical example of historic events as a means of calling for a leader, physically by giving the words an easy rhythm that invokes a pleasant inner rocking sensation and emotionally by speaking to them in their own dialect and thus making an internal connection.
Main body
A great deal of the poem works to make its case that the community both needs and will eventually have a great leader to provide them with a better life as Biblical history has provided an example of God’s intentions. “Dey kin fo’ge yo’ chains an’ shackles / F’om de mountains to de sea; / But de Lawd will sen’ some Moses / Fu’ to set his chillun free” (29-32).
In the first two lines, it can be seen that the speaker recognizes the people are still bound by chains and shackles they have just taken a slightly different and less physical shape as they were changed to local, county and state legislation. But he follows this with both the historical promise of Moses setting the Hebrews free out of Egypt and the suggestion that someone will need to rise to fill this position.
As he delivers his lines, the speaker of the poem maintains a regular pulsing rhythm that is at once energetic and reassuring. This is best seen through a lengthy example as the speaker attempts to cover himself against accusations of causing trouble: “Now don’t run an’ tell yo’ mastahs / Dat I’s preachin’ discontent. / ‘Cause I isn’t; I’se a judgin’ / Bible people by deir ac’s; / I’se a-givin’ you de fac’s. / Cose ole Pher’oh b’lieved in slav’ry, / But de Lawd he let him see / dat de people he put bref in, — / Evah mothah’s son was free” (47-56).
The poem is written with five stressed beats to every line. When delivered verbally, this type of rhythm takes on a sing-song quality that creates a sense of energetic motion in the mind. At the same time, each line is rhymed with the one above it, giving a sense of continuity and reassuring expectation. On the printed page, each line is divided after the third beat as a means of preserving this comfortable and quick beat while reducing the frightening appearance of lengthy lines of text.
By speaking to the people in their own dialect, the speaker creates an immediate emotional connection between his listeners/readers. At no point does he attempt to provide an Anglicized version of the events, but continues to speak with words such as “wif” and “Dat” instead of ‘with’ and ‘that’.
He includes himself as one of the enslaved as he continues to emphasize he is merely preaching the Bible and finishes strongly by telling his listener/reader, “We will praise de gracious Mastah / Dat has gin us liberty” (83-84), firmly linking himself with them as a part of the brotherhood of unrecognized citizens that will one day be counted.
By appealing to the listener/reader’s intellect through logic, his body through the rhythm and rhyme of the poem and his emotions by connecting with his inner language and sense of suffering, the poem retains a strong power over those experiencing it. Through the logical argument, the speaker attempts to both reassure and galvanize the reader into action by attempting to take up the Moses role. The physical senses evoked through rhythm and rhyme further suggest to the body that something needs to be done even as the motion remains a comforting inner rocking one.
Conclusion
Finally, the emotional connection to suffering and community supported by the examples of God himself serves to bolster feelings of hope and comfort.
Works Cited
Dunbar, Paul Lawrence. “Ante-bellum Sermon.” Name of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher’s name, date of publication: page number where poem appears.