Dunbar wrote "We Wear the Mas

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 Wear the Mask,"

Paul Laurence Dunbar

k" during a period of widespread racial discrimination in the United States. Why might the wearers of the mask not want people to see their pain?

Question

English

Pranav Conway

15 October, 06:11

Dunbar wrote "We Wear the Mas

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 Wear the Mask,"

Paul Laurence Dunbar

k" during a period of widespread racial discrimination in the United States. Why might the wearers of the mask not want people to see their pain?

+2

Answers (2)

Know the Answer?

Javier Weeks · Answer 1

The poem describes the experience of blacks in post-Civil War America. The narrator is wearing a mask not because of double-standards or hypocrisy but to hide his pain ... An exposition of their pain might invite contempt of White Americans, the mask allows them to function in society without displeasing others.

Barrett Hood · Answer 2

-concern for their own safety

-the fear of appearing weak

-the belief that the world wasn't ready to see it

-the feeling that revealing pain would hinder their success

Explanation:

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