An Ante-Bellum Sermon Analysis

We is gathahed hyeah, my brothahs,
In dis howlin' wildaness,
Fu' to speak some words of comfo't
To each othah in distress.
An' we chooses fu' ouah subjic'
Dis -- we'll 'splain it by an' by;
"An' de Lawd said, ' Moses, Moses,'
An' de man said,' Hyeah am I.'"

Now ole Pher'oh, down in Egypt,
Was de wuss man evah bo'n,
An' he had de Hebrew chillun
Down dah wukin' in his co'n;
'T well de Lawd got tiahed o' his foolin',
An' sez he: "I'll let him know --
Look hyeah, Moses, go tell Pher'oh
Fu' to let dem chillun go."

"An' ef he refuse to do it,
I will make him rue de houah,
Fu' I'll empty down on Egypt
All de vials of my powah."
Yes, he did -- an' Pher'oh's ahmy
Wasn't wuth a ha'f a dime;
Fu' de Lawd will he'p his chillun,
You kin trust him evah time.

An' yo' enemies may 'sail you
In de back an' in de front;
But de Lawd is all aroun' you,
Fu' to ba' de battle's brunt.
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.

An' de lan' shall hyeah his thundah,
Lak a blas' f'om Gab'el's ho'n,
Fu' de Lawd of hosts is mighty
When he girds his ahmor on.
But fu' feah some one mistakes me,
I will pause right hyeah to say,
Dat I'm still a-preachin' ancient,
I ain't talkin' 'bout to-day.

But I tell you, fellah christuns,
Things'll happen mighty strange;
Now, de Lawd done dis fu' Isrul,
An' his ways don't nevah change,
An, de love he showed to Isrul
Wasn't all on Isrul spent;
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 Scriptuah,
I'se a-handin' 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.

An' dahs othahs thinks lak Pher'oh,
But dey calls de Scriptuah liar,
Fu' de Bible says "a servant
Is a-worthy of his hire."
An' you cain't git roun' nor thoo dat
An' you cain't git ovah it,
Fu' whatevah place you git in,
Dis hyeah Bible too 'll fit.

So you see de Lawd's intention,
Evah sence de worl' began,
Was dat His almighty freedom
Should belong to evah man,
But I think it would be bettah,
Ef I'd pause agin to say,
Dat I'm talkin' 'bout ouah freedom
In a Bibleistic way.

But de Moses is a-comin',
An' he's comin', suah and fas'
We kin hyeah his feet a-trompin',
We kin hyeah his trumpit blas'.
But I want to wa'n you people,
Don't you git too brigity;
An' don't you git to braggin'
'Bout dese things, you wait an' see.

But when Moses wif his powah
Comes an' sets us chillun free,
We will praise de gracious Mastah
Dat has gin us liberty;
An' we'll shout ouah halleluyahs,
On dat mighty reck'nin' day,
When we'se reco'nised ez citiz'
Huh uh! Chillun, let us pray!

.: :.

Re: First post.
Dunbar was born after the war ended...

| Posted on 2009-07-19 | by a guest

.: :.

The phrase 'ante-bellum,' meaning 'before the war,' is a phrase usually used in relation to pre-American Civil war times. The main issue of this war was the question of slavery; the Northern states of America supported African-Americans and wanted to abolish slavery, while the Southern states (also known as the Confederation) wanted the right to keep slaves, mostly as a work force for platations. This poem was probably written as a inspirational speech for people before the war began.

| Posted on 2008-08-31 | by a guest

.: sdf :.

Following the Civil War, the condition of the black man was arguably no better than slavery. The weak Republican Party abandoned Reconstruction in the south because of corrupt and racist politics. Blacks were robbed of their suffrage wherever possible, terrorized by violent organizations like the Ku Klux Klan, burdened by intense poverty and unemployment, and nationally mocked in degrading “minstrel shows.” To survive in this world many blacks portrayed themselves as a “singing, shuffling, banjo-picking being” perhaps to make white society comfortable and obtain a menial job, or even distract themselves from dismal reality. It is from this injured spirit and a silent mask of contentment that Dialect poetry was born. Dialect poetry, made famous by poet Paul Laurence Dunbar, discussed the qualities of the Black-American lifestyle in that era. Author James Weldon Johnson argued that Dialect poetry “is an instrument but with two full stops, humor and pathos.” He reasoned that poetry of the genre could never give a full picture of the black man because it is restricted to only show the humor in his folly and the pathos in his life. However, critic Joan Braxton commented that Dunbar’s dialect poetry was “militant by the standards of his day.” Much of Dunbar’s dialect poetry portrayed humor and pathos of the Black-American, but they also had a third dimension, militancy.

| Posted on 2004-10-12 | by Approved Guest