16 pages • 32 minutes read
Gloria Larry HouseSelma, 1965
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1965A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Ghosts and Angels
The symbol of ghosts introduced in Line 1 (“Amid the ghosts of civil rights marchers” [Line 1]) functions in multiple ways. First, the concept of ghosts gives the marchers a specter-like image—an image later echoed through the imagery of the marchers. Ghosts are typically apparitions of the dead who appear living. In choosing to describe the marchers as ghosts, House describes them as the dead. Ghosts haunt the living. The slavery and inequalities that Black American suffered haunts American history. These marchers are described as shells of people because, at the time of marching, they lack the right to vote; they also lack an essential part of what it means to be human and have a say in their country.
House also describes the marchers as angels: “They were tattered angels of hope” (Line 15). Like ghosts, angels are ethereal. While ghosts might be remnants of the living waiting to pass into the afterlife, angels are spiritual beings thought to be messengers of a god. Another definition of angels is a person of exemplary conduct or virtue. To describe the marchers as angels is to describe them as beings beyond the living world bearing a message of purpose and importance: equal rights for all humans.
The evolution of the marchers from “ghosts” (Line 1) to “angels” (Line 15), which occurs roughly halfway through the poem, is a moment when the poem turns. The marchers become more than the clothes on their back and the streets down which they walk. They are “performing their historic drama” (Line 21), to be forever remembered.
Drama
In Line 20, House describes the marchers leaving Selma for Montgomery as a drama, stating, “they performed their historic drama” (Line 20). Throughout the poem, House alludes to the concept of performance, play, and scenery, all of which serve as a symbol for this nonviolent protest to the state capital. Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was known for leading acts of nonviolent resistance, which achieved social change through symbolic protests or civil disobedience, often in the form of marches and boycotts. By symbolizing the march as a performance or play, House amplifies the drama of the march, making it into a piece of art itself. Much of the poem is written through a theatrical lens. From the ghosts emerging in Line 1 to the children singing in Line 6, the poem sets a scene. In the poem’s final four lines, the diction used (“performed” (Line 21); “drama” (Line 21); “set” (Line 22)) is taken directly from the theater as though the marchers are on a stage.
By using theatrical imagery and symbolism of plays, House emphasizes the dramatic nature of the event: It is a pivotal moment in American history. The federal government sanctioned the event, and the marchers were protected by hundreds of Alabama national guardsmen (“Selma to Montgomery March.” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute. Stanford University.). “[Against] the set of their / wet brick project homes” (Lines 22-23), the Selma marchers achieved victory when the Voting Rights Act was signed later that summer. House describes the march as a “performance” (Line 21), which speaks to nonviolent resistance. The marchers assembled—as players on a stage—to march for equality and human rights.
Dancing
The symbol of dancing, introduced in Line 20, stands out in the poem. Much of “Selma, 1965” is grey, ominous, and ghost-like. The poem is full of worn-out roads, torn clothing, and puddles—none of which match the concept of dancing. By including the description of the marchers “Dancing the whole trip” (Line 20), House adds feelings of celebration, achievement, and unity to the march. The Selma march in late March 1965 came on the heels of several murders and marches earlier in the month, which resulted in the police brutally beating many of the protesters; the most gruesome of these events on March 7 came to be known as “Bloody Sunday” (“Selma to Montgomery March.” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute. Stanford University.). Thanks to televised coverage of this event, the nation became outraged by the brute force used on the nonviolent marchers.
This historical background is helpful to better understand why the symbol of dancing would be effective in the poem. House, writing this poem in the aftermath of these more brutal marches, witnessed both the violence and the peace that accompanied the various iterations of this demonstration. To describe the marchers as “Dancing the whole trip” (Line 20) is to describe their hopeful nature. They are eventually victorious over violence, social injustice, and the lack of human rights they so long experienced. The symbol of dancing is one of celebration, unity, and determination—all of which were required to achieve equal rights.
