What Figurative Language Does Maya Angelou Use?

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What figurative language does Maya Angelou use? The researcher has reduced the data and found that Angelou mostly use

metaphor, personification, simile, and symbolism

in her .

What are some figurative language in the poem Still I Rise?


Simile

: It is used to compare an object or person with something else to make the meanings clear to the readers. There are a lot of similes used in this poem such as, “But still, like dust, I'll rise”; “Just like moons and like suns” and “'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines”.

What is a hyperbole in Still I Rise?

Hyperboles are an important literary device to this poem. “

You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I'll rise

” (21-24). This shows the judgment people have for others. With the help of the literary devices, the poem has more depth.

How does Maya Angelou use metaphors in Still I Rise?

In the first example of metaphor,

the speaker states that she is “a black ocean”

(line 33). She is no longer simply “like moons” or “like suns.” By the end of the poem, she is a force of nature—”a black ocean”—in and of herself.

What is figurative language?

Figurative language makes meaning by

asking the reader or listener to understand something by virtue of its relation to some other thing, action, or image

. Figurative language can be contrasted with literal language, which describes something explicitly rather than by reference to something else.

  • Metaphor: The poet uses metaphor (an indirect comparison) when she compares wind to water. …
  • Alliteration: …
  • End Rhyme and Internal Rhyme: …
  • Imagery: …
  • Personification: …
  • Repetition:

Phenomenal woman, That's me.

Metaphor

– comparing the adoring men to a hive of honey bees. They swarm around her and are attracted to her Hyperbole-of men falling on their knees. Angelou uses this to illustrate the effect Her power has over others without trying.

What types of figurative language and imagery are used in the poem? There is a

simile, imagery, visual, auditory, kinetic

. Compare and contrast metaphors and similes and their purposes. Metaphor – A direct comparison of two basically unlike human or nonhuman things.


A figure of speech in which the poet describes an abstraction, a thing, or a nonhuman form as if it were a person

. William Blake's “O Rose, thou art sick!” is one example; Donne's “Death, be not proud” is another.

For example, if an athlete is doing well, you might say they're “

on fire” figuratively

. If their clothes catch on fire (which hopefully doesn't happen), then they'd be on fire literally.


Personification, onomatopoeia , Hyperbole, Alliteration, Simily, Idiom, Metaphor

.

Lesson Summary

Rhetorical devices abound in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, that makes the reading more memorable. Angelou successfully employs

hyperbole, simile, alliteration, allusion and aphorism

to draw attention to key phrases, characters or settings.

This sentence applies human characteristics to a nonhuman object. When this happens, it is called personification.

In Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, personification brings her memories to life.

Although

Maya Angelou alludes to several authors

in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, William Shakespeare is her favorite. His works and his name reappear several times in the text, including Sonnet 29 and ”The Rape of Lucrece”. Biblical allusions are also frequent as much of Maya's childhood is spent in church.

Ans :

Metaphor

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

“Where water is not thirsty” (

metaphor

) – The speaker once again lacks spiritual nourishment. This line is another Biblical reference. Christ says that whoever drinks the water he provides well never thirst again. The speaker is so deprived of spiritual and religious connection that even water is thirsty.

Those who hear or read the hyperbole should understand that it is an exaggeration. You've probably heard common hyperboles in everyday conversations such as

“I'm so hungry, I could eat a horse,” “I've seen this movie a hundred times,” or “It cost an arm and a leg.”

This is specifically shown in lines 1 and 2 “Because I could not stop for Death‐ He kindly waited for me‐.” This is

personification

because death cannot literally stop to wait for someone.

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Amira Khan
Author
Amira Khan
Amira Khan is a philosopher and scholar of religion with a Ph.D. in philosophy and theology. Amira's expertise includes the history of philosophy and religion, ethics, and the philosophy of science. She is passionate about helping readers navigate complex philosophical and religious concepts in a clear and accessible way.