Historical and Psychological Strategies

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Psychological Strategies in Ballad of Birmingham
This is a poem that describes the bombing that occurred in a church in Alabama in 1969. The poem tends to explain the situation that existed in the Birmingham society at the time. The mother describes there was trouble all over the city and people were killed without discrimination. Walking outside was considered a risk as a stray bullet could hit one and die. As the two main characters of the poem converse, we learn that the city was not safe even during the day (Randall n.p). The mother denies her kid the chance to go outside as she is afraid that she may be caught in the city’s scuffles. The daughter insists that she intends to go out and celebrate since it is on March Freedom Day, but her mother does not relent her stand.
After much persuasion, the mother accepts to allow her to go outside but on condition that she goes to the church. This shows that despite all the hardships that encounter the city, she is a religious woman who believes that the only haven is at home or in the church. Soon after her daughter left, she smiles knowing that she will be safe, but her smile is short-lived when she hears an explosion outside. Despite her sincere belief in the church as one of the safest places in the city, she runs as fast as she can to search for her daughter (Randall n.p).
When she decides to go outside, she is astonished to find that her daughter was dead after being caught up in the church bombings.

This situation reveals two cases of irony. First, it is ironical that people are killed in the church where it is considered to be the safest place in a city that is marred with violence all over. It is also ironical that this happens on Freedom Day which is supposed to signal the end to the unrest that encounters the city. The poem elaborately explains the state of the city at the specific moment and how the residents are hopeless about realizing a change in the place.
Work Cited
Randall, Dudley. “Ballad of Birmingham.” Poetry Foundation. N.p., 2014. Web. 23 Feb. 2018.