One of the things that relates Phillip‘s poem and Douglass’s book is the musical and rhythmic tone that she puts in her poem. Slaves use songs to express their feelings. As the refrain that Douglass fellow-slaves sing on their way home from the farm: “I am going away to the great   house farm!” This explains the contentment of these people for going home.  Thus Douglass mentions that he really understands the meaning of those words once he becomes free. He could interpret this song by being in the other side. Sometimes our point of views can change depend on which side we analyze a situation. The same condition happens here when Philip wrote this poem.  The language barrier that existed between the slaves and the masters even thought between the slaves themselves Douglass experiences it in the process of learning English. As a child he could not communicate with the white children. As a foreign speaker it is a frustration to be somewhere where people speak a different language. You feel inferior to others and it is easy for others to get round you. As Douglass started to learn how to read and write, he became aware of the false belief that the brain of a black is different from a white. Phillip points out the same thing in her poem, it was discovered by two doctors that all human brains have the same shape. Slaves could have this knowledge once they learn their oppressors’ language.

Valerie Dorisca