Gwendolyn’s Brooks uses both denotation & connotation when writing the poem “a sung in the frontyard” to add meaning to specific words & phrases. Brooks uses the denotation method to describe the speaker’s current situation, while the connotation method is used to compare the poem with her life view.
Both the title as well as setting convey a particular meaning. It begins with “I’ve lived in my front yard all of my life” (Brooks Line 1). It is meant to be a front yard where a girl is playing. She keeps to the boundaries of her mother’s rules. Denotation can also be used to create imagery. You might think of an image of a small blonde girl wearing a light pink dress with bows on her hair. The yard is a safe and monotonous way to live. This interpretation of the yard sets the tone and attitude for what will happen in the next few sentences.
The first line is filled with a number of connotations, which show how the speaker feels about her surroundings. Line 4 of the poem, “A Girl Gets Sick Of A Rose”, has a connotation which suggests that there may be flowers in the front yard or a garden. A rose’s association with beauty, elegance, and love is common. The rose connotation alludes at the simplicity and innocence of the speaker’s life. The meaning also conveys the speaker’s dislike for her simple and beautiful life. She wants to be more than a lady and a simple woman.
The limitations placed on the speaker are preventing her from being adventurous. Contrary to the beautiful front yard, it is the back yard which is “unintended and hungry”(line 3). The speaker cannot play in this wild area. It is an expression that describes a weakness due to lack of nutrition. However, weeds are not hungry in the literal sense. This word is used by the speaker to describe how the weeds have taken over the backyard. The speaker, who is unhappy, feels trapped in her front yard. Back yard is a symbol of danger and unpredictability in life. Her mother wants to shield her from these things. The weed that is hungry represents a messy and passionate life.
The speaker, despite her mother’s desire to protect, is fascinated by the way this life works and wants “a peek behind” (line 2) In the second verse, the speaker revealed her class to provide context for the events that will take place: “I wish to go now to the backyard And maybe even down the street, to where the children of charity play. I want to have fun today (lines 5-8). The speaker’s use of the term “charity child” (line 7) indicates that he belongs to a class higher. This is done to suggest the meaning of the words that the mother uses to address the speaker in the third verse. The speaker calls her mother “My Mother” in all lines (11, 13).
The word mother can be used to refer to any woman, especially a woman with a child she has had. When referring to her as “mother”, the speaker implies that they are white. Often, African-American speakers will use terms like “ma”, “mama”, or “ma” instead of the formal address. She sneers and shows disdain toward the other kids by refusing to play. “My mother sneers” (line 11). It is clear that sneer means to be condescending, but the context of the speaker’s mother and her socioeconomic class makes it more obvious. This sneer shows that the mother has a racist attitude and is truly hateful of the children in the neighborhood. This is to show her disapproval of the children.
The woman who is “stockings in night-black lacing” (line 19.) has a denotation that indicates she’s a prostitute. The speaker’s connotation is more important than that of the prostitute. The speaker makes fun of it by referring to the stockings as “brave”. The speaker’s use of brave suggests that he or she aspires in some way to be like the woman who is wearing the stockings. The speaker sees the woman wearing stockings as strong. She argues that the wearing of stockings gives a woman more freedom.
Brock’s use denotation, connotation and metaphor gives this poem a lot of its meaning. The reader gets a glimpse of what it was like to be a white high-class child in a time when racism still existed. The speaker didn’t share her mother’s prejudices, and she desperately wanted to experience what she wasn’t able to.
References
Original: Furthermore
Paraphrased: Additionally
Brooks, Gwendolyn. Perrines literature: Structure Sound & Sensibility Tenth edition. Eds. Thomas, R. Arp. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2009. 948. Print.