The Trials and Triumphs of Robert E. Hayden

Essay by EssaySwap ContributorCollege, Undergraduate February 2008

download word file, 5 pages 0.0

Downloaded 23 times

The poem that I chose was Those Winter Sundays written by Robert Earl Hayden. This poem is about a man who reflects back on his troubled childhood. As an adult, Robert can see that the bad things he endured as a child were not entirely his father?s fault. He realized the positive things that his dad did for him and regrets not saying Thank-you. There are many influences in which could have played a part in Those Winter Sundays. Some of the influences were differential treatment between siblings, verbal and physical abuse, and the lack of physical affection from his parents.

Robert Hayden was born as Asa Bundy Sheffey on August 4, 1913 in Detroit, Michigan. His parents were Asa and Gladys Sheffey. Asa and Gladys were experiencing marital problems; they separated before the birth of their son. Gladys Sheffey felt confused; she wanted to be involved in her son?s life but could not manage it alone.

She decided to give her son up for adoption. A couple named William and Sue Ellen Hayden took young Asa in. The couple then had Asa?s birth name changed to Robert Earl Hayden.

American poet, Robert Earl Hayden, had a reputation for finely crafted and powerfully meditative poems. He was raised in a poor neighborhood in Detroit. He was shuttled between the homes of his mother and that of his foster family, who lived next door for most of his childhood. Robert was unable to participate in sports, because of impaired vision. Robert spent most of his time inside where he would do nothing but read. In 1932, Robert graduated from high school and, with the help of a scholarship, attended Detroit City College (now known as Wayne State University).

Robert Hayden published his first book of poems, Heart Shape in the Dust,