post #4

Literary Device Admiration

While I was reading, "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings", by Maya Angelou, I noticed that she used a lot of imagery to paint a full picture of what happened in her life, which I found very intriguing, in some parts it felt like I too was there with her experiencing the same things as she did which was, in my opinion,really cool to read and that's what kept my attention throughout the book (which is especially hard to do for memoirs). Here are a few lines from her book as examples to show the absolute awesomeness of her use of this literary device, "In cotton-picking times the late afternoons revealed the harshness of Black Southern life, which in the early morning had been softened by nature's blessing of grogginess, forgetfulness, and the soft lamplight." She also uses simile (like) a lot which further draws the reader in. I would like to incorporate imagery in my writing to give it another dimension which would probably be quite flat otherwise. I would incorporate imagery in how I described a place. For instance, instead of saying, "The garden was pretty", I would say, "The multi-colored flowers sparkled with dew in the early morning light." I think the latter is a lot more interesting to read than the first one. I would also try to include simile; however, it's really hard for me to think up relatable things and compare them like Ms.Angelou did in her book or in her many amazing poems. I also admire her unapologetic honesty that is in the whole book. She just gives the readers the truth of what happened to her in a fashion that seems so raw and natural which is quite refreshing in a world full of liars who will do anything to make themselves look better in any way they can.