Poem 7 - Alone by Maya Angelou

Alone

By : Maya Angelou

Lying, thinking
Last night
How to find my soul a home
Where water is not thirsty
And bread loaf is not stone
I came up with one thing
And I don't believe I'm wrong
That nobody,
But nobody
Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone
Nobody, but nobody
Can make it out here alone.

There are some millionaires
With money they can't use
Their wives run round like banshees
Their children sing the blues
They've got expensive doctors
To cure their hearts of stone.
But nobody
No, nobody
Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone
Nobody, but nobody
Can make it out here alone.

Now if you listen closely
I'll tell you what I know
Storm clouds are gathering
The wind is gonna blow
The race of man is suffering
And I can hear the moan,
'Cause nobody,
But nobody
Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone
Nobody, but nobody
Can make it out here alone.

Analysis

            In the poem, Alone, Angelou talks about the theme of isolation, suffering and the class system in society. For example, Angelou says, "But nobody Can make it out here alone.", which suggests that no one can face difficult times unless we have someone to support us like family, friends and the community. The above quote introduces the theme of isolation and suffering stating that both are connected to each other. Suffering follows isolation because we cannot fight problems on our own - we need someone to hold our hand and guide us through. Theme of class is also brought up by the author - " There are some millionaires With money they can't use " - suggesting that isolation is not only a problem for the poor but also for the rich who have too much money but nobody to spend the money on. A generalization is evident through isolation impacting everyone in the society, which means that isolation is universal and has no relevance to the class system in society. In terms of the literary devices, Angelou uses simile, repetition and personification in her poem. Angelou compares the wives to banshees using simile, " Their wives run round like banshees ", which means that the wives of the millionaires married them for money and isolated them from the true love of a life partner, suggesting the theme of isolation and suffering. In addition, the use of repetition of the words - "Alone, all alone Nobody, but nobody Can make it out here alone. ",  allows the reader to understand the message of the poem - suffering cannot be dealt with isolation, instead it gives rise to suffering. Angelou also says, " Where water is not thirsty ", where human qualities of thirst is given to water through personification. The personification means that where water does not feel thirsty so that it does not drink itself making itself insufficient for others to survive. The literary devices used in this poem helped me analyze and understand the depth of the author's meaning through making comparisons, repetitive reminders of the message and making connections of human qualities like thirst with a non-living object - water.

            Now making connections to myself on this topic, I am an emotional person. When I was small and I had to leave a part of my large family  - uncle, aunt, cousin and grandparents - behind while I was coming to Canada with my parents and my twin sister; I felt isolated and was so depressed in the first four months in Canada that I asked my parents to go back home to my family that I have grown up with. The feeling of sadness and isolation that I felt was bitter and can connect to what the author is suggesting to through her piece - " but nobody Can make it out here alone ". I have similar thoughts as to the author regarding isolation and suffering, which allows me to connect my personal experience and feelings of isolation to what the author is trying to send out to her readers - allowing me to better understand the context of the poem. Moreover, I can connect this to myself in one more way, when I went to a camp for a religious meeting of 3 days - it was for kids, I had to do everything by myself and at that time I wanted my mom there as I did not know how to properly fold my blankets and organize things in my bag. Through this, I can connect to author's feelings about how we cannot face difficulties alone but if we are united, we can face it just like I would have if my mom was there at the camp. However, I learned these things at the camp.

            I agree with Angelou's perception that isolation is something that has been making us depressed and unable to deal with our issues. Everyone needs support to live and be happy. That is why we have families and friends. I also agree to the problems about to fall down on humans, which is partly because of people dividing themselves into races, castes and classes. Such actions result into isolation and eventually sadness as the author mentions. For example, countries nowadays are so aggressive about their position in front of the world that they fight each other for land or other resources like oil. They are the perfect audience of Angelou as she wants the world to be united and face all the problems together approaching towards global development. If we keep fighting, there will be one day when humankind will be extinct from Earth. Thus, the poem, Alone, is sure to inspire its readers about isolation, suffering, and class system in society.

            The meaning of this poem is that isolation is universal and brings sadness to our lives and disconnects us from the help from others that is a must in order to overcome any difficulty in life. Angelou also attempts to show the causes of isolation - " Storm clouds are gathering The wind is gonna blow The race of man is suffering " and advices us to unite and avoid isolation and fight problems together with a better approach. Someone would write this poem to show how devastating isolation could possibly be and to show that all we need is company of others to overcome problems. Other potential reason why someone could write this poem is to promote global peace by referring to the race of man suffering, which applies to each and every human. Angelou's purpose behind writing this poem is to aware the readers that isolation is eventually killing us from the inside everyday and in order to live happily, we must get together and unite regardless of differences in race, class, and financial position. Nothing matters when the question is of our happiness and life.