Poetry as Sound and Object

Unit Content Objectives

In the Yale National Initiative seminar on “Poetry as Sound and Object,” Dr. Feisal Mohamed’s seminar offered us “ways to reduce the threshold of intimidation when teaching poetry by focusing on poems as an experience of sound and as fascinating material objects with ties to the visual arts.”  Throughout this seminar we were exposed to a plethora of primary sources in the Beinecke Library.  One huge revelation for me was that the late great literary giant Langston Hughes donated his complete archives to Yale’s Beinecke Library, and we were able to view some of the original notes and letters he wrote to other literary figures. I wish my students could see these historic documents; I’m sure they would be fascinated just as I am.  This exploration of poetry and its relationships to books, arts, history, music and multiple art forms provides opportunities for meaningful engagement. What defines poetry even more than its form is how it sounds. The way a poem marches from line to line or how onomatopoeia for instance can bring its subject to life is what makes a piece poetic. Two main text that will be utilized in this unit are Henry “Box” Brown and The Adventures of Captain Underpants.  

Who was Henry Box Brown?

“Henry Box Brown was born enslaved on a Virginia plantation in 1815. After his family was sold, Brown committed himself to escaping from bondage. He developed a plan to have himself mailed as freight to a free state. With the help of a carpenter named Samuel Smith, they built a box three feet long, two feet wide, and two-and-a-half feet tall with three small air holes and lined with a woolen felt cloth. On March 29, 1849, Brown climbed into the finished box with a small container of water, a few biscuits, and a tool for poking additional air holes in the box if needed. The crate was closed and addressed to William Johnson, a barber in Philadelphia who was an operator in the Underground Railroad.”⁶ The box arrived a day later. He made the twenty-seven-hour journey to freedom crammed into a box measuring 3 X 2 X 2 feet.

A small gathering of abolitionists was in attendance and once they removed the lid from the box, Brown stepped out into freedom for the first time in his life. Brown was subsequently the subject of a popular slave narrative, which he later adapted into a stage show.  Therefore, Henry Box Brown was also a writer and performer. He took his experience and wrote about it. As a teacher this is exactly what I want my students to do, write about their personal experiences.  My students will research, read and write and perform their own scripts around the extraordinary life of Henry Box Brown.

The Resurrection of Henry “Box” Brown at Philadelphia (lithograph, 1850), by Samuel Worcester Rowse. (VMHC 2005.149)⁷

To celebrate Brown’s safe arrival, he adopted the name Henry “Box” Brown. This rare lithograph, titled the resurrection of Henry “Box” Brown at Philadelphia, shows the moment that the box was opened in the office of the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society. “This print is probably the only portrait of Henry Box Brown from life and the artist likely also drew the box. Standing figures represent people who were at Brown’s arrival; standing figures shown at right include James Miller McKim, who ran the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery office and a well-known abolitionist, and (second from right) Frederick Douglass. “⁸

Tyehimba Jess’ Olio (2016) was required reading in Feisal’s seminar. Tyehimba Jess hit the literary jackpot with his Pulitzer-Prize winning collection of poems in Olio,⁹ which documents the resistance of several late 19th and early 20th century black artists and musicians. Olio spans an impressive range of post-Civil War black icons from the sculptor Edmonia Lewis to Henry “Box” Brown. “What Jess makes clear in this section is that there is no pathway towards black humanity through minstrel or blackface. Minstrels only exist within the American context as a pathway to invalidate the humanity of black folks, to simultaneously validate all of the vulgar, fearful stereotypes required to hold an entire group of people as chattel and invalidate any concept or understanding of that group as alive or belonging to society in any way other than an object.”¹⁰

Presenting Henry “Box” Brown Facing Evading Slave Catcher

In the book Olio Jess creates a poetic duet with Henry Box Brown as he evades his slave catcher. On pages 218-219, Henry Brown thinks outside the box that he is actually using to escape the town that held him hostage.  His opposing oppressor curses and searches outside the box Henry croons in. The illustration shows one facing the other but then they face away when you unshackle the page and attach them back to-back so he can scare the slave catcher away. The dialogue goes a little something like this: H= Henry and SC =Slave Catcher, Witness their syncopation!

	H: Coffined up in this here box. That’s me. Henry:
	SC: Tremblin’ like a whip-torn waif! He’ll arrive (waif means to stray)
	H: Postage paid freeman. I tell myself that I ain’t
	SC: Tremblin like a whip torn waif! He’ll arrive11
	

Even though Jess dramatizes Henry and the slave catcher having this imaginary dialogue it entices the reader to explore a variety of possibilities. My students will write their own dialogues and even interview the fictional Henry Box Brown about this historic but daring adventure.

Connecting the main characters Harold and George from Captain Underpants to Henry “Box” Brown is a smoother transition that most would think. George and Harold are writers and illustrators but most significant is that they are super creative. How creative Henry “Box” Brown was to ship himself to freedom.  George and Harold use their creativity to create This same strategy will be applied as students engage in the adventures of Captain Underpants.

Poetry and Reader’s Theater with Harold and George Captain Underpants

Google Image of the Treehouse Comix where Harold and George write all of their Comics¹²

In the Captain Underpants series, Harold loved to draw and George enjoyed making up stories. Both these characters inspire my students to write creatively. The Captain Underpants series has inspired my students to create their own comics with their own superheroes. Henry “Box” Brown gives my students visual imagery and inspiration from a historical viewpoint. Captain Underpants is providing my students with more contemporary animation and inspiration to write, act and draw their own superheroes.

The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey is the first book in the Captain Underpants series, published in 1997.¹³It follows the adventures of fourth graders George and Harold, who are best friends. They love to pull pranks and play tricks on others. They also write their own comic book about a crime-fighting superhero named Captain Underpants which they sell for .50 cents at school. They find a magical ring and use it to hypnotize their school principal, Mr. Krupp, into becoming Captain Underpants. Captain Underpants fights for truth and justice. Even Captain Underpants doesn’t know his true identity.

Since my pre-k-through 4th graders love this animated series, we will conduct read alouds and students will create comic book poetry around themes that arise from this series such as friendship, identity, humor, bullies, heroes, creativity, responsibility, empathy and that good triumphs over selfishness.