Childhood

“Childhood” is a poem by Margaret Walker, a decorated poet, novelist, and writer, who wrote novels and poems that “[affirmed] the African folk roots of [B]lack American life” (“Margaret Walker.” The Poetry Foundation.). Her poems often draw upon folk tales of characters who struggled against obstacles they somehow overcame, surviving in spite of the difficulties. Her most famous novel, Jubilee, was a historical piece of literature that followed a family of slaves during the Civil War. Walker did not shy away from difficult topics—slavery, injustice, economic hardship—that particularly affected the Black communities in America. Her writing served as a mouthpiece for the injustices Black Americans had to live through during the 19th and 20th century.

“Childhood,” which was originally published in 1942 in her first full-length collection, For My People, explores themes of poor working conditions, famine, economic hardship, and a difficult life. Also represented in the poem is the Southern culture in which Walker grew up. Much of her work is inspired by Walker’s time in the South, illustrates the pain those people endured, and ultimately advocates for change. “Childhood” is such a poem. While most children may remember moments of happiness from their time as a child growing up, Walker’s speaker remembers the opposite: Their

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