What are the poetic devices used in the poem Before The Birth of One of Her Children?

Question

You must login to add an answer.

or use

Need An Account,

Radhika · Accepted Answer · 2023-08-21T21:41:51+05:30

Metaphor: The poem employs metaphorical language to create vivid comparisons and convey deeper meanings. For example, the speaker compares her body to a “cradle” and her unborn child to a “bud” in the following lines: “My rambling brat (in print) should mother call, / I cast thee by as one unfit for light, / Thy visage was so irksome in my sight, / Yet being mine own, at length affection would / Thy blemishes amend, if so I could. / I washed thy face, but more defects I saw, / And rubbing off a spot still made a flaw.”

Personification: The poem employs personification, attributing human characteristics to non-human entities. For instance, the speaker personifies her poem as a child by referring to it as a “rambling brat” and using maternal language to describe her relationship with it.

Apostrophe: The poem uses apostrophe, addressing an absent or abstract entity directly. In this case, the speaker addresses her unborn child throughout the poem, engaging in a conversation with the child before its birth.

Imagery: Bradstreet utilizes vivid and sensory imagery to create visual and emotional impressions. For example, in the lines, “But when I saw thee stamping, struggling, striving, / As if to rise above that sphere thou’rt in,” the reader can imagine the child’s movements and sense the speaker’s emotional response.

Hyperbole: The poem employs hyperbole, exaggerating for emphasis or dramatic effect. In the lines, “I washed thy face, but more defects I saw, / And rubbing off a spot still made a flaw,” the speaker exaggerates the flaws she perceives in her unborn child’s appearance.

English Notes Latest Questions