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Shame

Psychology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Painful feeling of humiliation from perceived inadequacy or exposure.

Detailed Definition
Shame targets the core self as flawed. Poetry conveys it through averted gaze, fragmented voice, or bodily metaphors (e.g., burning cheeks), exploring its silencing power and potential for transformation through witness.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Sylvia Plath’s “Lady Lazarus,” shame is performed for an audience; In Emily Dickinson’s “I’m Nobody! Who are you?”, shame is avoided by rejecting public identity; In Langston Hughes’ “I, Too,” shame is imposed but rejected; In Warsan Shire’s “For Women Who Are ‘Difficult’ to Love,” shame is reclaimed through self-definition; In Robert Hayden’s “The Whipping,” shame scars childhood memory; In Ocean Vuong’s “Someday I’ll Love Ocean Vuong,” shame intertwines with queer identity.
Additional Notes
Shame—feeling flawed or unworthy—is distinct from guilt (which targets behavior); in poetry, it often appears as bodily imagery or silence (Vuong, Shire); poetic techniques include avoidance, fragmentation, or second-person address; students should analyze whether shame is internalized or resisted; note its link to identity—shame polices belonging.
Also Known As
Guilt Humiliation Mortification Embarrassment Self-loathing abash
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