Recitation and Analysis of "Who am I?" By: Natasha L. Preston Jacqueline Pfeil Mrs. Cook Honors English 1 R.2 3/10/17

Who am I? By: Natasha L. Preston 

Who am I, you ask. I am a lion who comes off as a lamb Who am I, you ask? I am a lion who comes off as a lamb. I am an ocean with waves big enough to drown. I am a roller coaster of emotions. I am a hater of people, liars And people who use others for a gain. I am a lost soul, a naïve child. I am one who has seen enough That would make most people's skin crawl. I am me, not you. I am who I am Judging me is only a negative reflection on you. So who am I, you ask? I am me...just me

Objective Summary The speaker of "Who am I?" is saying that they are many different things: A lion, a lamb, an ocean, a roller coaster, a hater of ignorant people, a lost soul, a naïve child, one who has seen enough, and just themselves. This being so, judgement of another person is negative, and will not change the fact that they are themselves and not anyone else. 

Theme The theme of "Who am I?" By Natasha Bishop describes the complexity of people and how they can only be themselves and nobody else. Bishop writes, " I am me, not you" (10), stating that life is not a cookie-cutter, if you will, for one person is not the same as their neighbor. Because of this she states, "Judging me is only a negative reflection on you" (12), adding that judgement almost doesn't make sense because of the diversity of human beings, and that it will not change a person's character, but will rather make one look bad for their judgement. 

Tone The tone of "Who am I?" starts off firm, as the speaker is very sure about who they are. As the poem goes on, the speaker gets more negative: "I am one who has seen enough/That would make most people's skin crawl" (8,9). When the speaker concludes the poem, it is back to firm, but has more of a neutral tone: "I am me...just me" (14). 

Speaker The speaker is talking about themselves in this poem and what they are. The speaker describes themselves as many different things such as: "I am a lion who comes off as a lamb" (2), "I am a roller coaster of emotions" (4), and "I am me...just me" (14). 

Figurative Language  Bishop almost solely uses metaphors in her poem. "I am a roller coaster of emotions" (4), is a metaphor that supports the theme that people are complex, for both emotions and roller coasters give different people a variety of feelings. Bishop leaves this metaphor open and vague to let readers remember what they personally felt when they went through their own emotional roller coaster. 

Works Cited