Term 2 When Great Trees fall by Maya Angelou
Term 2 When Great Trees fall by Maya Angelou
By Maya Angelou
Pre-poetry
The speaker stops using metaphors in the third verse and speaks simply about
death.
Similar to how a massive tree’s collapse sends waves miles away, the passing of a
great soul impacts the hundreds or thousands of souls they touched while they were
alive.
Even the air seems to become “light” and “septic,” according to the speaker. When a
significant loved one passes away, it is difficult to breathe.
The speaker talks about how individuals who have experienced loss have a fleeting
“hurtful clarity” in which they may see and comprehend what a priceless soul has
been lost.
Stanza III
Even though they were “never to be the same,” she writes that gradually her senses were
“restored.”
She hears the one lost in the back of her mind and in the backdrop of all she does. The
phrase “they existed” is whispered to her.
They were real. Her life now has new meaning and purpose because of this. She asserts that
she can “be better” because this great one already existed.
All those who have endured loss will find immense hope in this poem’s conclusion. The
speaker keeps empathizing with those who have also lost loved ones.
It gives the readers the impression that they are not alone. There is hope for healing and joy
in the middle of a profound loss, even if things will never be the same and even though
there will always be grief and despair.