The speaker reveals very little about themself over the course of the poem. In fact, the speaker never refers to themself directly, preferring instead to speak using the first-person plural pronoun, “we.” The speaker’s use of “we” implies that their belonging to a particular community is more important than any characteristics that might define them as an individual. Over the course of the poem, the speaker offers three primary details about the community to which they belong. First, this community suffers deeply. Second, though it isn’t clear what the cause of this suffering is, the speaker implies that it may have historical roots. The speaker suggests as much when they reference an outside “world” (lines 6 and 14) from which their community must shield itself. By positing some external society from which they stand apart, the speaker implies that their community is a minority. Finally, in the third stanza, where they make a direct address to Christ, the speaker reveals that their community belongs to the Christian faith. From this information, we might reasonably infer that the speaker belongs to the same community as the poet, Dunbar, who was an African American man who grew up in the post-Civil War era.

Whatever the speaker’s specific background may be, it’s clear that they have a devotion to their community, which they aim to protect. Throughout the poem, the speaker insists on the importance of keeping up appearances of contentment and well-being so that the outside world can’t discern their community’s deep suffering. When the speaker says, “We wear the mask,” they mean it both descriptively and prescriptively. That is, they are saying both that their community already wears the mask, and that their community must continue to wear the mask. Their community must keep wearing the mask so they appear strong and don’t reveal their vulnerability. In this way, the speaker’s insistence on the mask communicates a need to maintain a sense of dignity. As long as the outside world can’t sense their deep suffering, the community will preserve their dignity. This, in turn, may be the only source of strength they have left. Thus, by calling on their community to wear the mask and preserve their dignity, the speaker demonstrates their commitment to perseverance and survival.

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