This poem is a revelation. When beginning to read this poem, you are hit early on with many questions just after reading the title, We wear the mask. You begin to ask, who is we? What is significant about this mask? Why are they wearing a mask? I’ve read this poem numerous amounts of times and I believe I have finally developed my meaning of it. Dunbar’s poem has many themes and symbols, such as hypocrisy, pain and suffering, society, race, and lies. This is a rondeau poem written in iambic pentameter. A rondeau is a poem that has 10-15 lines and is organized into three stanzas. We wear the mask that grins and lies. Who is we? We represents the black american population of the time. The mask is full of deception and lies. It hides our cheeks
