Johnson

The line I am most attracted to in this poem is its conclusion: “You sang a race from wood and stone to Christ.” It’s interesting because the word ‘race’ is ambiguous; to what (or to whom) does it refer? One way to take it is something akin to the ‘race’ of life. Paul, in the New Testament, often used this metaphor for the Christian life: it’s a race that you must persist in. If you are able to go all the way to the finish line, then you can finally put away your tools, your toils, your “wood and stone” – and join Christ in paradise.

The other way to take ‘race’ is to see it as a reference to the black race in general. “Wood and stone” then become metaphors not simply of work in general but specific representations of the institution of slavery. Therefore, it was through the perseverance of the unknown black bards (particularly their songs) that the road was paved for an escape out of slavery into a new creation for the race as a whole.