For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow Is Enu
For Colored Girls who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf: Style and Theme
Lorin Hobart
AML 2604
11-25-96
Ms. Hunt
For Colored Girls who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf is a piece of work written by Ntozake Shange. It is written in an unusual style that is called a choreopoem. This style is very effective when done by a skilled poet such as Shange. She uses a combination of rhyming lyrics and a play like format to captivate the reader. The subject matter of her work is very powerful as well. The entire collection revolves around how black women are oppressed and their courage throughout many trials. Using the combination of a unique style and riveting content Ntozake Shange sends a message of hope and pride to her fellow black women in her work For Colored Girls who Have
Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf. First of all, Shange writes in the form a choreopoem. A choreopoem is a piece of work that is written as a poem but is intended to be acted out on stage sort of like an opera. It is constructed in such a way that it flows just as well on paper as it does on stage. She either writes in all capital letters or all lower case letters and never mixes them. This creates a style that she is personally known for. It sets her apart from other writers and makes her work original. None of the characters have names or any type of identity except for the color of their clothes. When the piece is done on stage the characters are never introduced they are just eventually recognized by the color of their dresses. This makes it a little difficult to follow for the reader or spectator at first but after the work is under way each individual may find they relate to a certain color and begin to follow the specific character wearing that certain color. This is another literary tactic that Shange uses to separate herself from other writers. Shange writes much of her work from personal experience which makes her writing twice as
Lorin Hobart
AML 2604
11-25-96
Ms. Hunt
For Colored Girls who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf is a piece of work written by Ntozake Shange. It is written in an unusual style that is called a choreopoem. This style is very effective when done by a skilled poet such as Shange. She uses a combination of rhyming lyrics and a play like format to captivate the reader. The subject matter of her work is very powerful as well. The entire collection revolves around how black women are oppressed and their courage throughout many trials. Using the combination of a unique style and riveting content Ntozake Shange sends a message of hope and pride to her fellow black women in her work For Colored Girls who Have
Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf. First of all, Shange writes in the form a choreopoem. A choreopoem is a piece of work that is written as a poem but is intended to be acted out on stage sort of like an opera. It is constructed in such a way that it flows just as well on paper as it does on stage. She either writes in all capital letters or all lower case letters and never mixes them. This creates a style that she is personally known for. It sets her apart from other writers and makes her work original. None of the characters have names or any type of identity except for the color of their clothes. When the piece is done on stage the characters are never introduced they are just eventually recognized by the color of their dresses. This makes it a little difficult to follow for the reader or spectator at first but after the work is under way each individual may find they relate to a certain color and begin to follow the specific character wearing that certain color. This is another literary tactic that Shange uses to separate herself from other writers. Shange writes much of her work from personal experience which makes her writing twice as