Robert Hayden was born into the poor neighborhoods of Detroit. His parents divorced early on and his mother left him in foster care. Of his upbringing he said, "I lived in the midst of so much turmoil all the time I didn't know if I loved or hated." This conflicting statement seems to bear more depth than words could explain. I think it may be more effective to just feel its meaning. This accomplished man became an English professor, distinguished writer, and the first African American to be poetry consultant to the Library of Congress.
Middle Passage by Robert Hayden retells the horror of the slave ships traveling from Africa with specific focus on The Amistad. Without reading a word, the physical appearance is fragmented with broken structure and altered margins. There is movement in appearance even without the words. The opening brings us into the four slave ships that are labeled and directly to vivid description of "sails flashing like weapons, sharks following moans, fever, horror, and dying." The language is brash, precise, and concise. Images are explored through a small number of carefully compiled words.
Historical details are inserted with specific dates, names, and events. I found so much relevance in this poem not just in the writing that was lush, but in the incorporation of facts. There's depth in the content of this poem not just in the views of the author but in the historical relevance. The sections seem to be separated by different voices leaning into each other with a hymn constantly echoing in the background. The hymn declares the words of the Christian, "Jesus Savior pilot me over life's tempestuous sea." The hymn continues, woven into the suffering and crews despondence and evil. It seems to clarify the hypocrisy of the "heathen" view that did exist.
Small amounts of repetition are inserted like, "Voyage through death, voyage whose chartings are unlove." This poem is pure horror. I also notice portions where more subtle alliteration of consonants is used. "They threw overboard the butchered bodies." Downward movement is achieved as words included in the opening of the poem bring closure that lingers with the reader. "Voyage through death to life upon these shores." I view Hayden as a master of language. I'm astonished at the concise writing that contains so much fact, story, detail, emotion, and imagery.