They said a slave-owner had as much right to his property as the owner of any other kind of property.

VOA: special.2009.05.21

The other character that's mentioned in the poem is the boy's father, whose trees they are, the property owner, who also is absent.

这首诗里提到的其他人是他的爸爸，这些树就是他爸爸的，这些财产的拥有者，但也没有出现。

耶鲁公开课 - 现代诗歌课程节选