Katie Rosensteele
"The Ballad of Late Annie" is one of several poems from Gwendolyn Brooks' "Notes from the Childhood and the Girlhood" section of her book Annie Allen. Published in 1949, Annie Allen, a mock epic of an African-American girl growing up in a time of increasing social tension, illustrated the existence of a black struggle that did not break into the American mainstream until the birth of the Civil Rights Movement ten years later. It is comprised of four different parts; "Notes from the Childhood and the Girlhood," "The Anniad," "Appendix to the Anniad," and "The Womanhood." In "The Ballad of Late Annie," Brooks introduces her anti-hero Annie, a childish, proud girl.
In "Notes from the Childhood and the Girlhood," we see Annie's immaturity and idealism. Her childish nature is evident when she disrespects her deceased relative by sticking out her tongue while peering over the coffin in the poem "Old Relative." Annie asserts her pride and self-respect in "The Ballad of Late Annie."
In the next section of the book, "The Anniad," Annie assumes the role of an anti-hero "Whom the higher gods forgot,/ Whom the lower gods berate" (Brooks 38). From the beginning, it is clear that the epic is not a mockery of Annie, but is instead a sympathetic comment on her desire to improve upon her predetermined role in society. "The Anniad" begins with description of Annie's romantic vision; she is "Watching for the paladin/ Which no woman ever had" (39). Instead of waiting for this knight in shining armor, however, she weds a "tan man" equipped with "intimidating teeth," whom she later calls "narrow master" (39). When the tan man goes off to war, Annie is filled with fear that he won't return, but when he does, she is disappointed by how much he has changed. After being forced by his numerous affairs to turn to her friends and nature for advice, Annie feels "shorn and taciturn" (46). The tan man's death shatters her romantic vision by forcing her to grow up and take care of her children alone. At the conclusion of "The Anniad," the romantic young girl she was in "The Ballad of Late Annie" has vanished as a result of the burden that constant reminders of her deceased husband has placed on her emotions. At this point, she describes herself as "tweaked and twenty-four...almost thoroughly/ Derelict and dim and done" (49).
Annie's lamentation for her late husband continues in the "Appendix to the Anniad;" "They took my lover's tallness off to war...Now I cannot guess what I will use an empty heart-cup for" (51). After witnessing the cruelties of adulthood, her childhood romanticizing becomes desperation, evident in the poem "What shall I give my children? who are poor." In this section, motherhood becomes the most important part of Annie's life.
The Ballad of Late Annie
The first stanza sets the scene of the poem: Annie is late in bed, though the sun is up. The first line leads the reader to believe that there is something else Annie is supposed to be doing. Furthermore, the description of her "blush-brown shoulder" as "bare" connotes that Annie's sleep is vulnerable. The word "lip" has a few connotations, including back talk, or deviant speech. Thus, line four can be taken to mean that her deviant behavior, her refusal to leave bed, is at least momentarily victorious over the power that would like to raise Annie from her sleep.
In the second stanza, however, the innocence of Annie's world is shattered by her mother's shriek. Her mother makes clear her expectation that Annie either begins taking responsibility for herself or gets married. Metaphorically, the peace of Annie's life is disrupted by society's conventions; expectation of conformity is pressing her to grow up and marry quickly.
Annie's impatient reaction to her mother's expectations is ironic in the larger context of "Annie Allen" because of the importance that motherhood assumes in "The Womanhood." Although Annie perceives her mother as hard and unaccepting of her dreams, the realization that "People who have no children can be hard" is a crucial idea of "The Womanhood" (52). Annie's ultimate acceptance of the fact that children trap adults into being responsible and make "a sugar of/ The malocclusions, the inconditions of love," is quite ironic in light of her childhood anger with her mother's expectations (52).
Annie answers her mother's intrusion by stating that she will not succumb to the pressure to marry; she will not settle for an imperfect man. This declaration is also deeply ironic in the context of "Annie Allen" because of her eventual marriage to the tan man instead of her ideal knight. In this stanza, we see the childhood pride that disappears as her life unravels throughout her adulthood; at the end of "The Anniad," Annie is "almost thoroughly/ Derelict and dim and done" (49).
Annie's absolute confidence is clear in the last stanza when she describes the perfect man for which she will save herself. In order to win her heart, he will have to be "gist and lacquer;" her ideal mate is just and durable like glossy lacquer. Furthermore, she will not settle for someone who will not be able to provide her with the finer things in life, represented by "melted opals" and "pearl-leaf." The poem concludes in an optimistic tone, and the possibility of Annie finding a good man appears to be strong. This romanticizing is a crucial element to the understanding of Annie Allen in its entirety because it sets the stage for the depression and devastation of her spirit that are evident in the later parts of the book.
Brooks, Gwendolyn. Selected Poems. New York: Perennial, 1999.
last modified 12-6-01
