Read this excerpt from "We Wear the Mask" by Paul Laurence Dunbar and answer the question that follows:
We wear the mask that grins and lies,
It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes, —
This debt we pay to human guile;
With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
And mouth with myriad subtleties.
Why should the world be over-wise,
In counting all our tears and sighs?
Nay, let them only see us, while
We wear the mask.
We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries
To thee from tortured souls arise.
We sing, but oh the clay is vile
Beneath our feet, and long the mile;
But let the world dream otherwise,
We wear the mask!
What effect does the poet achieve by repeating the phrase, "We wear the mask" throughout the poem? Complete the sentences to answer the question.

In the poem "We Wear the Mask," Paul Laurence Dunbar voices his repressed anger and frustration toward American society. He repeats the title phrase three times in the poem, using the words mask and we to show that . The first use of the phrase is matter-of-fact. In the second stanza, the statement is followed by a period, which shows resignation. However, at the end of the poem, Dunbar almost shouts the phrase defiantly. The mask seems to become something he wears proudly. Through this gradual emphasis on the phrase, Dunbar could be implying that . ______

In the poem "We Wear the Mask," Paul Laurence Dunbar voices his repressed anger and frustration toward American society. He repeats the title phrase three times in the poem, using the words mask and we to show that people hide their true feelings behind a false expression.

The first use of the phrase is matter-of-fact. In the second stanza, the statement is followed by a period, which shows resignation. However, at the end of the poem, Dunbar almost shouts the phrase defiantly. The mask seems to become something he wears proudly. Through this gradual emphasis on the phrase, Dunbar could be implying that the world should only be allowed to “see us, while/ We wear the mask.” This suggests something beyond merely dissembling for the sake of duplicity or dishonesty.

This mask that “grins and lies” is hiding the existence of excruciating misery and suffering. The speaker says, “We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries/ To thee from tortured souls arise

azikennamdi azikennamdi · Answer 2 · 2022-01-10T13:39:23+01:00

1. Repetition is a literary device that employs reusing the same word or phrase over and over again in order to emphasize an idea, and or a feeling.

The poet - Paul Laurence Dunbar achieves this effect when he uses the following phrase repeatedly:- We Wear the Mask.

2. In the poem "We Wear the Mask" Paul Laurance Dunbar voices his repressed anger and frustration toward American Society. He repeats the title phrase three times in the poem, using the words "Mask" and "We" to show that many Americans are suffering beneath the polite smiles they wear.

3. The first use of the phrase is matter-of-fact. In the second stanza, the statement is followed by a period, which shows resignation. However, at the end of the poem, Dunbar almost shouts the phrase defiantly. The mask seems to become something he wears proudly. Through this gradual emphasis on the phrase, Dunbar could be implying that there are many who need help and that there is a need for people to be more open with their problems.

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