Blackberries

My other blog that I chose was from “Blackberries” by Yusef Komunyakaa. It was about a boy who picks blackberries from the woods and tries to sell them. As he collects them he eats them and while doing this he daydreams about history. A car passes him while he is near the road and the two children in the back seat brought him back to earth from his daydreaming. First of all, from “They left my hands like a printer’s / Or thief’s before a police blotter,” it is as if this is a daily job for this young Child, and this child had been doing this job for quite some time. The child does not want to do this job but he has no choice due to his family being so poor. I believe that  the author uses the word” Terrestrial sweetness” to describe how rich the berries taste. However, at the same time, the young child cannot enjoy the sweet juicy fruits. As I can see from the third stanza “An hour later, beside City Limits Road / I balanced a gleaming can in each hand, / Limboed between worlds,” after the boy fills out his basket, he aspires to sell his blackberries to make a little money. We understand that this young boy in the poem didn’t have a childhood corresponding to the childhood of the others. Instead of a child who plays, jokes, giggles and has fun, he must make money for his family. I feel sorry for this child, but this is his life and not anyone can change this for him. In the last stanza, “The big blue car made me sweat. / Wintertime crawled out of the windows” the author gives us a clear gap between lower class and upper class people, which is meaningful to how different their lives are. The upper class people, also called the “rich people” relax inside enjoying their comfy lives, while, the young boy suffers in the treacherous summer. Also, as we can see from the lines “I saw the boy& girl my age, in the wide back seat.” People who purchase blackberries must have a luxury car, and therefore, their children live in a very comfortable family setting in comparison to this, young boy, who is only ten years old, who lives in such a brutal environment. The young boy also has to face all kinds of problems that he isn’t supposed to deal with in his young age.