I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen,”
Then.

Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed–
I, too, am America

I, Too by Langston Hughes (1902‑1967).

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Langston Hughes

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Questions

1. Read Langston Hughes's poem.
2. The poem is built on a comparison between the present and the future. Identify the changes.

3. What is Langston Hughes criticizing in his poem? Prove it, quoting the text.

4. What emotions does the narrator express in the first part of the poem?

5. Who will be ashamed in the future? Why?

Let's react!

This work echoes a poem by Walt Whitman: I hear America Singing
.
6. Read the poem and guess why Langston Hughes decided to write “I, too, sing America”.

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2
If I was a man

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Text document

Would it make any difference

Would I contribute more to society
Than I am doing right now
If I was man

Being a woman, I have sacrificed my happiness many times
Sometimes for my brother, sometimes for my father
Gave my hundred percent in everything
But the more I wanted to reach my goal
The more it seemed farther
Would it be easy to get it
If I was a man
Would it make any difference
If I was a man

I care for everyone around me
I love them even when they hate me
I sometimes scold the younger ones for their good
Respect the elders even when they insult me
Would it be easy for them to understand me
If I was a man
Would it make any difference
If I was a man

I work hard, but my male colleagues earn more than me
Men talk to me, but don't want to hear me
They say women can never beat men
But I don't want to race ahead of anyone
Just want them to walk with me
Would it be the same wish
If I was a man
Would it make any difference
If I was a man.

Simran Kankas, 2020.

1. Although some people consider “If I was a man” to be grammatically incorrect (instead of “If I were...”), it is commonly used in informal English.

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Questions

Let's talk this out!

Individual work

1. Read Simran Kankas's poem.
2. Read lines 1 and 2 to guess the theme of the poem.
3. Why does the poet wish she were a man?

4. What if she were a man? What would be different?

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3
Still I rise

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Questions

Differentiation

Click on your path!
A
or
B

Path A

1-A

What do you know about Serena Williams?

2-A

What does the verb “rise” mean? How does this word relate to Serena?

3-A

Listen to her reciting

Maya Angelou's poem

. Which keywords did you hear?

Path B

1-B

Find references in the poem: to the past, to slavery, to nature.

2-B

How does the poem portray the way Maya Angelou chooses to respond to racial discrimination and injustice?

Go further

3. Serena Williams did not recite the whole poem. Listen to the whole poem

here

. What does this stanza refer to?

Let's talk this out!

Group work

4. Share your findings with your classmates. Think about why the poem is called Still I rise.

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Grammar in progress

La modalité est essentielle en poésie car elle permet au poète de donner son point de vue.

Simran Kansas utilise le modal WOULD qui permet notamment – mais pas seulement – d'exprimer le conditionnel. Il est suivi d'une base verbale. En général, le modal est accompagné d'une proposition en IF exprimant une condition. Cette proposition est au prétérit.

Maya Angelou utilise le modal MAY quand elle liste les tentatives de ses adversaires pour la déstabiliser et la blesser.

➜ Quel autre modal utilise-t-elle pour prédire l'avenir ?

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Celebrate poetry and equality


Write a poem debunking another stereotype (gender, origin).	Would it make a difference if you were an adult? Debate. Enregistreur audio	Imagine another stanza for Maya Angelou's poem. List challenges you need to overcome in your life.

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Poetry has neither gender nor color

1I, too, sing America

Text document

Langston Hughes

2If I was a man

Text document

3Still I rise

Grammar in progress

Celebrate poetry and equality

Une erreur sur la page ? Une idée à proposer ?

Nous préparons votre pageNous vous offrons 5 essais

1
I, too, sing America

2
If I was a man

3
Still I rise