Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit
by Alice Walker
Did you ever understand this?
If my spirit was poor, how could I enter heaven?
Was I depressed?
Understanding editing,
I see how a comma, removed or inserted
with careful plan,
can change everything.
I was reminded of this
when a poor young man
in Tunisia
desperate to live
and humiliated for trying
set himself ablaze;
I felt uncomfortably warm
as if scalded by his shame.
I do not have to sell vegetables from a cart as he did
or live in narrow rooms too small for spacious thought;
and, at this late date,
I do not worry that someone will
remove every single opportunity
for me to thrive.
Still, I am connected to, inseparable from,
this young man.
Blessed are the poor, in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus. (Commas restored) .
Jesus was as usual talking about solidarity: about how we join with others
and, in spirit, feel the world, and suffering, the same as them.
This is the kingdom of owning the other as self, the self as other;
that transforms grief into
peace and delight.
I, and you, might enter the heaven
of right here
through this door.
In this spirit, knowing we are blessed,
we might remain poor
Summary of Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit
- Popularity of “Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit”: The poem “Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit” appeared in 2013. Written by Alice Malsenior Tallulah-Kate Walker as her full name goes, this beautiful poem was the leading poem of her collection, The World Will Follow Joy. Although the poem relates to the blessed state of the poor people, Alice Walker definitely has her own community, the African Americans, in her mind when she penned this poem. The poem beautifully presents the case of the marginalized communities, the treatment meted out to them, and their blessed state in theological terms. The popularity of the poem lies in its religious undertones with global concerns regarding poverty and the blessed state of the poor.
- “Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit” As a Representative of Poverty and Shared Humanity: The speaker starts the poem with a rhetorical question about the common understanding of the poor, their entry to heaven, the depression of the poet, and its interlink with her profession of writing. As a writer, it is her duty to depict what she sees, even if a poor man sets himself ablaze in Tunisia. Then she adds that she feels ashamed that she has not had to sell vegetables like that young man. She connects it with her own situation, saying that although her affluence does not match with that young man, she joins that young man through Christian solidarity due to the teachings of Christ. She sets the tone of the poem against the usual colonizing discourse of others to state that all humanity is equal and that sharing the sufferings of the poor could make all others enter heaven. Only in this lies their redemption.
- Major Themes in “Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit”: Poverty, the sufferings of the poor, shared humanity, and religious feelings are major themes of this poem. Although the poet has kept her racial background in mind when writing about the marginalized of the third world, she has mainly included the poor under the cover of the teachings of Christ. She is of the view that all human beings, whether they are rich or poor, are equal and that God blesses all of them merely for showing sympathy for each other and not for causing discomfort and suffering. Her main concern is her community through the linkage of biblical reminders about the main task of Jesus.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit
Alice Walker has used various literary devices to have intended impacts on her readers. Some of the major literary devices unsed in this poem are as follows.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /o/ in “If my spirit was poor, how could I enter heaven?” and the sound of /a/ in “I see how a comma, removed or inserted.”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /c/ in “with careful plan/ can change everything.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
as if scalded by his shame.
I do not have to sell vegetables from a cart as he did
or live in narrow rooms too small for spacious thought;
- Irony: Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. This poem shows irony in that the poet is not moved by the self-blazing of a poor in Tunisia despite knowing that Jesus has taught the spirit of love and brotherhood.
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Alice Walker used imagery in this poem such as “I, and you, might enter the heaven/of right here / through this door” or “We might remain poor.”
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols like vegetables, a cart, and narrow rooms for poverty.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Antimetabole: The poet has used antimetabole, which means repetition of some words in successive clauses with transposed order, such as other and self in “This is the kingdom of owning the other as self, the self as other.”
- Free Verse: It means the poet has no fixed rhyme scheme or metrical pattern. This poem is a free verse poem.
- Repetition: The poem uses several repetitions for rhetorical effects, such as self, other, and poor.
- Rhetorical Questions: This question is posed not to ask something but to stress upon something such as “Did you ever understand this?” or “Was I depressed?”
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful to stress the benefits of poverty and its status in religion.
“In this spirit, knowing we are blessed,
we might remain poor.”
