“Navigating the Echoes of History:”

Navigating the Echoes of History:”
Finally Unmasking The Poem of America;
A Rhetorical Representation of Sovereignty.
“This is the most serious public health emergency we have ever faced.” After the uncomfortable
words of Dr. Tedros Adhanom on the day of January 5, 2021, we were left in the void in which discord
occurred. We were left with half-covered faces which we hid behind zoom squares. We have been
stripped away from our normal structured life; we were forced to face the reality of a world, where our
norm was gone, and to be very honest, that normal would never be again.

As our culture faded away, our traditions became tragedies, our diets became death, our values
became vulnerable, our legacies became legends, and a poem unmasked. A poem that caused political
diversity and caused us to understand the experience of a completely new idea that we had never heard
before the complete digitalization of almost everything, a paradigm change in which almost all facets of
life and knowledge were available and connected via the internet; A powerful poem that hides its true
meaning in four different ways under the iceberg; A poem that briefly captures and conveys the
intricacies of our culture and gives us an idea of the heritage that has molded us throughout time is The
Hill We Climb By Amanda Gorman.
Commented.


So right when we jump in, we are filled in with the amount of culture and the past legacy that she
shares to give herself a position. So, when she addresses her position as “A skinny black girl descended
from slaves and raised by a single mother,” she not only introduces herself, but she gives us an idea of her
culture, and what her culture is, we can, for example, tell that her culture has focused around not giving
up, persevering, and holding a long-lasting legacy from where she comes from.

Better yet, Not only we can tell that she wants to become president and therefore acknowledges
this opportunity to stand up and speak to the world as George W. Bush once did, but perhaps we can tell
just by her position that her past culture has consisted of sacrifices, leadership, or standing up against
rights including the civil rights movement where black activists and citizens faced violence as they
campaigned for the right to vote and fight against segregation. Even Activism and Leadership which
includes Black Leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, and many more suffered
personal hazards, including physical damage and assassination for their roles in pushing for civil rights
and equality.


We know about Gorman’s position now and that her audience may encompass all of America.
But, there may be an undiscovered dawn. Notably, Jonah, a figure from the Bible, appears as a
benchmark. God provides Jonah with “shade” through the growth of a vine as he is seeking cover from
the hot heat. This draws an interesting link between Gorman’s message: that America is enmeshed in its
own “shade,” which represents its struggles and differences. The country must leave this metaphorical
gloom and face its difficulties in order to discover the “light.” This is similar to Jonah’s Sea trials when he
was swallowed by the whale, which is sometimes referred to as “The belly of the beast.” In this poem, perhaps Jonah takes on a pivotal role, signifying the country’s collective journey through hardship and
aspiration for a better future.

As well in Jonah’s Sea trials, a huge storm arises, and the sailors realize that it is no ordinary
storm, perhaps an “OH NO!” “Look at this Sea we must wade!” was their reaction. In this case, the
pandemic is that storm, yet this is our “Sea we must wade.”
There have been seas that we have waded “Victoriously”, and storms that we have foreseen, “We
have braved the belly of the beast,” we have seen the worst that has happened, as Jonah did after repelling
against god, only to get swallowed by the whale for three days. But our storm has already sent tsunamis
our way. Has caused us to hide behind those Zoom squares, has caused us to drown inside of the sea, in
which we have to flea and trap ourselves inside of our leir; has caused us to wear these uncomfortable
clothed masks in front of our mouths, has caused us to take those AP tests in those libraries, and to have
those friends fade away. This is perhaps the biggest storm we have faced yet and perhaps we are inside of
that whale currently.
Once Jonah admits that if he throws himself overboard, his sacrifice will cease the storm, and in
this case, Amanda Gorman stands up for our country and addresses the sacrifices we have made, not
just historically, but biblically which is Jonah’s Sea trial. Those sacrifices don't just make the “United” in
the states of America, but the E in the Earth, E standing for Everyone! We therefore all should participate
in making the earth a better place, as Carl Sagan tends to want.
We only are down to two limited options, to resist unity for our legacies to be trapped inside of
that whale, or to unite and go out of that whale and spread the message throughout the world, to “Let the
globe, if nothing else, say this is true,” as of which Jonah spreads the message of God towards the world.
Perhaps us American citizens are in Jonah’s situation currently.