Question

with torn and bleeding hearts we smile, and mouth with myriad subtleties. why should the world be over - wise, in counting all our tears and sighs? nay, let them only see us, while we wear the mask. we smile, but, o great christ, our cries to thee from tortured souls arise. we sing, but oh the clay is vile beneath our feet, and long the mile; but let the world dream otherwise, we wear the mask! what effect does the poet achieve by repeating the phrase, \we wear the mask\ throughout the poem? complete the sentences to answer the question. in the poem \we wear the mask,\ paul laurence dunbar voices his repressed anger and frustration toward american society. he repeats the title phrase three times in the poem, using the words mask and we to show that the african american community shares a common experience of being oppressed. in the first use of the phrase is matter - of - fact. in the second stanza, the statement is followed by a period, which shows resignation. however, at the end of the poem, dunbar almost shouts the phrase defiantly. the mask seems to become something he wears proudly. through this gradual emphasis on the phrase, dunbar could be implying that people can triumph over suffering by accepting their circumstances people can protect themselves from being hurt by hiding their true self from the outside world african americans can survive bad situations only by being defiant african americans used the mask to hide their suffering and gain a kind of victory against society

Explanation:

The poem's repeated phrase highlights the shared experience of masking true pain by the African American community. The shift from resignation to defiant pride in the phrase's use points to the mask serving as a way to protect one's true self from external harm while enduring suffering.

Answer:

people can protect themselves from being hurt by hiding their true self from the outside world