What is Poetic Metaphor?
The poetic metaphor (extended metaphor or sustained metaphor) in a poem is the concrete object that represents an abstract idea throughout the entire poem. It is usually a product of an emotional response to something. The poem actually becomes the metaphor, as the metaphor runs throughout the poem. Here are some simple questions you can use for identifying or establishing a metaphor: 1.) What is the poem about? Why is the poem about that? 2.) What represents what (throughout the entire poem)? concrete object represents abstract idea concrete object represents abstract idea repeat as needed 3.) What is the meaning behind the words (if any)? 4.) What is the emotion? How is it conveyed? 5.) What is the purpose of the poem? Why was it written? 6.) What does the poem represent as a whole? Example Let’s try an example. The following poem was written by Tupac Shakur. I picked him because his metaphors are very straightforward. Try to identify the metaphor before moving on. The Rose That Grew
