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Transcript

The Boy Died in My Alley

Stanza 1

  • The first stanza begins with "The Boy." The line "The Boy", being capitalized emphasizes the importance of the boy, even though the reader does not know the name of the boy.
  • Brooks continues this use of capitalization to place importance on a phrase/word, such as "without my Having Known", meaning Brooks is pointing out that the speaker did not know the boy died.

Continued...

In addition, Brooks says "Apparently died Alone", illustrating the depressing death of the boy.

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Stanza 2

In the second stanza Brooks capitilizes the Policeman putting The Boy at the same level of importance of the Policeman. Brooks proceeds to say "Shots I hear and Shots I hear. I never see the Dead." The speaker implies that they constantly hear gunshots meaning this is a "bad", neighborhood. This also shows the speakers' indifference to all the gunshots she hears because it is so common.

Stanza 3

  • The author implements a use of anastrophe in the line "The shot that killed yes I heard ", this causes the reader to take a pause and experience the same weight that the speaker feels, knowing they heard the gunshot that killed the boy.
  • The speaker then says "across my years and arteries", and arteries are where the blood flow is strongest alluding to the blood loss and death of the...

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boy as well as how much the speaker cares about the mistake they have made.

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Stanza 4

In this stanza The author applies the device of past tense in the quote "A Boy was dying in your alley. A Boy is dead, and in your alley." Brooks presents the significance of how thw boy was once alive and how there could have been a chance to save him. Additionally, how the quote stresses that it's 'your alley' making it personal and different that other things that happen in the neighborhood.

Stanza 5

  • Tne author continues to use repition and capitilization to emphasize importance in the first line "I have known this Boy before." Brooks also uses the line "who ornaments my alley" as a metaphor for the Boy's blood that paints the wall of the alley and how the boy used to wander around the alley of the speaker. The lines that follow are "I never saw his face at all. I never saw his future fall." Even though the speaker had never seen the face of the boy she developed a connection. The speaker like most in this situation can not possibly fathom how this would be the end of the boy's life and if she had a chance she would go back and fix it, but there is no way to have known.

Stanza 6

In the 6th stanza the speaker says "I have closed my heart-ears." The speaker has become numb to the "volley", of gunshots heard. The speaker realises they have contributed into killing the boy.

Stanza 7

  • There seems to be shift in tone from remorseful to the realization that by meerly standing by the speaker has done as much damage as those who have killed the boy, which can be seen in the line "I joined the Wild and killed him."

Stanza 8

The 8th stanza paints a dramatic and tragic scene of the booy lying in the alley way callling out for anyone while he died alone. The author also illustrates a moment, lasting memory imprinted in the speaker's brain, for example, "The cry climbed up the alley...for a long stretch-strain of Moment." Brooks also capitilizes the word moment putting pressure on the importance of the moment.

Stanza 9

The final stanza is brief, but powerful. "The red floor of my alley is a special speech to me." The speaker now fully realizes the grave mistake they have made and the blood in the alley is a reminder to never be indifferent to an incident like this again.

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