Song In The Front Yard Imagery

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In Song in the Front Yard, the author uses imagery and symbolism to explain how a privileged and monitored childhood can lead to a rebellious and naive lifestyle. The use of descriptive words and phrases that also have alternate meanings can help the reader visualize and understand how early years filled with surveillance can alter your ways of thinking later in life. Gwendolyn Brooks uses illustrative terms such as “rough” to form a detailed image of a dirty and neglected backyard that describes the type of life she craves to explore. The use of this word conveys a lifestyle that is the complete opposite of the current one she has been given. Unlike the front yard, which can be described as perfect and pristine, Brooks wants to be dangerous …show more content…

For example, Brooks uses “roses” to describe her current life. Roses are typically seen as gorgeous flowers that are always on display, but their beauty fails to warn people about their hidden thorns. This can be tied back to the poet's life, as it shows how even though, on the outside, her life seems perfect and lacks any flaws, there’s a dark and underlying darkness to it. She then goes on to say that she “gets sick of a rose,” therefore saying she’s sick of pretending that she enjoys her repetitive and fake life. Additionally, Brooks then says she “wants a peek at the back,” where “weed grows.” Her use of this certain plant, compared to the rose previously mentioned, symbolizes the carefree and wild nature of the life she wants to explore. Weeds typically grow whenever, wherever, and don’t care about the plants or their growth effects. This can be used to represent how the speaker's thoughts about this new life are quickly growing, and she does not care about how this change will affect those around her. The symbolic message behind both of these words shows how the poet is tired of living on a facade and craves danger, excitement, and a new

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