Module 4 - Biography Poetry

Bibliographic Citation

Nelson, Marilyn. 2005. A Wreath for Emmett Till. Ill. by Philippe Lardy. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 9780618397525

Awards

Coretta Scott King Honor Book 2006

Michael L. Printz Honor Book 2006

Review

Marilyn Nelson takes on a dual role of historian and poet as she reveals the memorial tribute to young African American, Emmett Till who was lynched at the age of 14 while visiting Southern relatives in 1955. In the foreword of the book, Nelson explains her style for the poem. It is written as heroic crown of sonnets. A sonnet is comprised of fourteen rhyming lines in iambic pentameter. The heroic crown of sonnets is a sequence of fifteen sonnets which are interlinked as the last line of the first sonnet is the first line of the following sonnet. The final sonnet is developed by using the first line from each of the preceding fourteen sonnets. This makes for an interesting pattern as readers learn of the horrific events leading to Emmett Till’s racially motivated death. The mood of the sonnets is one of anger, sadness, and grief as the haunting story is retold with no filters to protect the reader’s emotions. Lardy’s symbolism in the illustrations provides extended opportunities for the haunting mood to continue.

Poem Title

Your only child, a body thrown to bloat,

mother of sorrows, of justice denied.
Surely you must have thought of suicide,
seeing his gray flesh, chains around his throat.
Surely you didn’t know you would devote
the rest of your changed life to dignified
public remembrance of how Emmett died,
innocence slaughtered by the hands of hate.
If sudden loving light proclaimed you blest
would you bow your head in humility,
your healed heart overflow with gratitude?
Would you say yes, like the mother of Christ?
Or would you say no to your destiny,
mother of a boy martyr, if you could?

Introduction or Follow-up Activity

I would recommend this book of poetry to be used with high school students as an extension for a cross-curriculum unit with Social Studies. Sharing this book with students while discussing the Civil Rights Movement will help them to vividly understand many of the events which lead to the movement. It may also open a lens to students as they view current situations involving injustice among people in other countries, and the incidents of injustice still occurring within the United States.