The poem, Light in the Dark

Bianca Diaz’s Use of Simile in “Light in the Dark”

Bianca Diaz employs simile in her poetry “Light in the Dark” to help readers compare or contrast distinct things by using words like “like.” The poet can use simile to highlight and underline the differences between the objects being compared. She compares stars to oily nickels, for example, by using “like” (Diaz 7). In line 14, she uses the word “like” to equate the mouths of the canines to the tongues of living beings. The use of simile strengthens and makes the poet’s thesis more memorable to the readers.

Bianca Diaz’s Portrayal of Human and Non-Human Elements

Bianca Diaz links human features and characteristics to inanimate objects, animals, and plants in her poem, and phenomena so that their nature and actions are understood in a much better way. It is easy for human to relate to something that is human or poses human traits and characteristics. She talks about the fire digesting chair legs (Diaz 1). The talks of gasping fire making her nervous (Diaz 12) and the woods whispering (Diaz 23). The dogs falling asleep and dreaming tell the reader of the mood of the atmosphere.

The Emotional Impact of the Poem

The poem conveys emotions and feelings to the readers. The reader gets the feeling from the poem based on the details like settings, backgrounds, objects and foreshadowing. She talks of an arid grumble as a description of the setting (Diaz 1). She evokes the readers’ emotions when she talks about the moving firelight makes valleys between their ribs (Diaz 29). The poem creates a frightening atmosphere as she presents the fire, the shining stars, which mean it is the night and thus represent the unspoken reality.

Work Cited

Diaz, Bianca. “The Light in the Dark” n.d.