The Power of Flight

It doesn't matter if you're Sugar Ray or R. Kelly—everyone wants to fly. And while, yes, on one level this is because a bird's-eye view seems pretty cool, we're talking about flight metaphorically. After all, flying is the universal symbol of freedom. So no wonder it's so important in "The People Could Fly."

In this story, we first see the African people in their homeland, gifted with the ability to "walk up on the air like climbin up a gate" (1). The image of someone flying over a gate is about as freedom-loving as it gets, if you ask us—if gates represent containment, well, there's no containing these people. Along this line, although the people lose their powers when they're enslaved, they eventually regain their magic and "flew away to Free-dom" (27). In short, they might be captured, but they can't be kept that way forever.

But the fact that these skills are hidden adds another delicious layer to this metaphorical seven-layer dip. Back in Africa, the people actually had wings, but were forced to shed them because it was "too crowded" on the "slave ships" (2). Interestingly, these wings never return even after they regain their powers. In other words, for people who are oppressed based on what they look like, their power stays hidden from visual observation.

The enslaved people in this story are persecuted and demeaned solely on the basis of the color of their skin, making the idea of a hidden power underneath the surface particularly powerful. Although they've been dehumanized, these people ultimately reveal themselves as they truly are. When they take flight, reconnecting with the power they've always had, we can recognize this as a statement that no matter how beaten down they are, their humanity and spirit cannot be crushed.