poetic devices in poems

My Mother at Sixty-six (poetic devices/figures of speech)

By Kamala Das

Simile – a) her face ashen like that of a corpse

                b) As a late winter’s moon

Personification - Trees sprinting

Metaphor – merry children spilling out of their homes

Repetition- smile and smile and smile…

Keeping Quiet by Pablo Neruda (poetic devices/figures of speech)

The poet has used symbols and comparisons to explain how we can end conflicts, wars and corrosive activities that are leading to the death of our civilization. He advocates keeping quiet and still for a while to introspect and understand ourselves and our relationship with our brothers and nature to build a peaceful and harmonious world order.

1.       ‘Count to twelve’ – symbolizes a measure of time. The clock has twelve markings on it, the year has twelve months and the day has twelve hours 

2.       Let’s-repetition to create a bond with the reader and stress his point.

3.       ‘Fishermen in the cold sea…hurt hands’-symbolic image  showing how man is ruthlessly destroying nature and harming other species in cold blood for his selfish need and greed. The ‘hurt hands’ – the sore hands of the salt gatherer would make him realize how he is harming himself by his mindless corrosive activities.

4.       ‘…put on clean clothes’- metaphor. The poet says that quiet introspection will make us comprehend the destructive nature of wars. Man would shed his blood soiled clothes and don on clean clothes i.e. he would cleanse his soul, heart and mind, purging it of all anger and hatred.

5.       Brothers – symbol of mankind

6.       In the shade- metaphor- just as shade protects us from the harsh sun, we will protect and shelter each other as brothers, thus live in peace and harmony.

7.       no truck - euphemism

8.       Earth can teach us as when everything… symbol, Just as earth, the greatest creator, in its sleeping mode appears to be dead on surface but is actually dormant and carefully preserving the seeds of life, human beings too need to keep still and quiet to rejuvenate and awaken the life forces within and be productive.

A Thing of beauty-John Keats (poetic devices/figures of speech)

Metaphor: bower quiet; sweet dreams; wreathing a flowery band; pall; endless fountain of immortal drink

Alliteration: noble natures; cooling covert; band to bind

Imagery: flowery bands, shady boon, daffodils in green world, clear rills, cooling covert, grandeur of dooms, endless fountain of eternal drink

Symbol: simple sheep – refers to mankind as Christ is the shepherd

Transferred epithet: gloomy days; unhealthy and o’er darkened ways

A Roadside Stand by Robert Frost (poetic devices/figures of speech)

The use of personal pronoun shows poet’s involvement and draws reader’s concern.

‘didn’t it see’ -The use of ‘it’ for people indicates they are inhuman

Transferred epithet –1)polished traffic (the traffic is not polished, people are polished)

2)Selfish cars

Metaphor/ figurative speech-1) the flower of cities from sinking and withering faint;

2) Swarm over their lives

3) Teaching them to sleep they sleep all day

Oxymoron and Alliteration - Greedy good doers; beneficent beasts of prey

Personification:

·        A roadside stand that too pathetically pled(also alliteration)

·        Sadness that lurks near the open window there/ that waits all day

·        Voice of country

Aunt Jennifer’s Tiger(poetic devices/figures of speech)

 By Adrienne Rich

Alliteration-Finger’s fluttering; prancing proud; chivalric certainty; weight of wedding band

Visual imagery- Bright topaz denizens; world of green

Irony: It is ironical that Aunt Jennifer’s creations- the tigers will continue to pace and prance freely, while Aunt herself will remain terrified even after death, ringed by the ordeals she was controlled by in her married life. 

Symbols:

Wedding band- symbol of oppression in an unhappy marriage. Its weight refers to the burden of gender expectations. Ringed means encircled or trapped, losing individuality and freedom.

 Aunt Jennifer- a typical victim of male oppression in an unhappy marriage, who suffers loss of individuality, dignity and personal freedom silently. She becomes dependent, fearful and frail.

Tigers- symbolize untamed free spirit. Here they stand in contrast to their creator’s personality. The use of colours implies that Aunt Jennifer's tigers and their land are more vital and enjoy a sense of freedom far greater than her. They pace and prance freely, proudly, fearless, confident and majestic, fearless of men

 Yellow (bright topaz) connotes the sun and fierce energy; green reminds one of spring and vitality.

Embroidery-  symbol of creative expression. The artwork expresses the Aunt’s suppressed desires and becomes her escape from the oppressive reality of her life.

Aunt (last stanza) –  as opposed to Aunt Jennifer. It shows that she has lost her identity completely, thus lost even her name.

Metaphor:

 Ringed with ordeals: even death would not free her as the wedding band, a symbol of oppression,, would yet be on her finger.

Terrified fingers: transferred epithet

‘Pace’ and ‘prance’ are action words. The rhyme mimics the movement of the tigers.