enoughtosee,protrudingfromthetopoftheir
hands due to aging as well as to the coarse treat-
ment the hands have recieved. The reader infers
that the speaker has touched her grandmothers’
hands, as otherwise she would not know that they
are rough.
Alliteration
Alliteration is a poetic term denoting the corre-
spondence of two or more words beginning with
the same consonant sound. These words must be
in positions relatively close to one another. Allit-
eration enhances the feel and continuity of a
work because certain words are linked through
this device, usually words the poet wants to
emphasize. The first instance of alliteration in
this poem occurs at the end of the third line in
the first stanza, where two words beginning
with the lettersare found. In the following line,
also at the end, are two words that begin with the
letterg. In the fifth line of the first stanza is
another instance of alliteration, where two words
separated by the wordandboth begin with the
letters. In the second stanza, the poet uses alliter-
ation twice more: in the beginning of the second
line and in the middle of the third line.
Repetition
Walker uses repetition of phrases in her poem as
wells as repetition of pronouns to draw attention
to certain points she wants to make. For exam-
ple, in the first stanza, she repeats the same line
at the beginning and at the end of the stanza.
Then she inserts the same line almost at the end
of the second stanza. This line can thus be under-
stood as the foundational line of the poem. The
poet also repeats the pronountheyfour times in
the first stanza, at the beginning of lines two
through five. These lines are also of somewhat
equal length, so not only is the pronoun repeated
but so, too, is the pattern of the phrase. This
pattern is much like the beat of a drum. This is
what the grandmothers did, the poet is saying;
this is why they were so strong. It is within these
repeated phrases that the poet describes the
grandmothers’ hard work, and only in these
repeated phrases are the grandmothers active.
As such, the repetition might evoke their foot-
steps as they trudge along behind the plow or the
movement of their hands as they plant the seeds.
The pattern can be looked upon as the rhythm
by which the women worked.
Rhyme
Only in the second stanza of this poem is rhyme
found. At the ends of lines two, four, and six of
the second stanza, Walker uses words that rhyme
with one another. The alternating lines in between
do not rhyme. One effect of this is that the intro-
duction of rhyme enhances the climactic buildup
to the last line, where the poet wants to make a
strong impression. Not only does the poem end in
a question, but also the last line concludes the
rhyming pattern. By linking lines together in the
second stanza, the rhyme also suggests a growing
sense of connection within the poem that height-
ens the contrast presented in the last line.Historical Context
Slavery in the United States
Slavery is defined as an involuntary state of
human servitude. People used as slaves are forced
to work against their will and may be severely
punished if they do not obey. During the early
centuries of American history, when slaves were
brought to this continent, they were bought and
sold and were considered property of their owners
with no rights of their own. Mothers were often
separated from their children, husbands from
their wives. Slavery in the United States was not
the inception of such practices, as slavery has
been practiced since ancient times. Often when
one country defeated another in war, those who
won took hostages from the defeated people and
made them work as slaves.
When European settlers in the first American
colonies needed cheap labor, slavery came to mind.
The first African slaves arrived in North America in
1619, when twenty Africans were led off a Dutch
ship to the Jamestown colony, in present-day Vir-
ginia. They were bound in chains and forced to
work; thus slavery in America began. At first, the
number of slaves was relatively small. However, as
the business of agriculture grew, especially in the
southern colonies, so, too,did slavery. Not all slaves
were taken to plantationsin the South, as slaves
in the northern colonies often worked in private
homes as maids, cooks, and butlers. In the South,
most slaves were put to work in the fields. Although
there were some laws in place to protect slaves,
they were seldom enforced. Whipping, branding,
and other harsh disciplinary actions were often
performed, with law-enforcement officials looking
the other way.Lineage