Question

Paraphrase the following lines from Dunbar's "We Wear the Mask":

Answer 1

Explanation:

"We Wear a Mask" is famous Paul Laurence Dunbar's poem.

It deals with the status of African-American community in the late 1800s. Using "we" in the title of the poem, he gives it a personal note emphasizing that he is tha part of the community too.

Mask suggests hiding their real feelings, just like the mask hides the face. These lines suggest pretending to be happy in order to fit in, because showing real emotions falls on deaf ears and brings about lack of understanding. More precisely, these lines show that this methaphoric mask hides their pain and sadness ("torn and bleeding hearts") and hides the words they would express this with, replacing it with things other want to hear ("myriad subtleties").