The Poet X Figurative Language
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The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
By Liane Hicks
The Poet X is a realistic fiction novel that is written in verse. It is about 15-year-old Xiomara Batista, a gifted poet who lives with her family in Harlem, NY. The novel is from Xiomara's point of view and reads like her personal journal of poetry describing her life, her views on religion, having to face constant sexism, her strict Dominican parents, her new forbidden boyfriend, and navigating the world as a young woman of color trying to find her voice.
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Storyboard Description
Have students identify and describe examples of figurative language in The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Storyboard Text
- THE HOLY BIBLE
- METAPHOR: THE TWINS ARE A WHISTLE AND A HURRICANE
- METAPHOR: POETRY IS A LIGHT
- .
- IMAGERY: MAMÍ ON THE SUBWAY
- Xiomara says Twin was born a soft whistle while she was born a hurricane. Her brother is quiet and meek, unable to stand up for or fight for himself. Xiomara on the contrary is steadfast in her opinions and does the fighting for both of them. Ever since they were little, Xiomara stood up to anyone who disrespected either of them using her words and her fists.
- “My brother was birthed a soft whistle: quiet, barely stirring the air, a gentle sound. But I was born all the hurricane he needed to lift -and drop- those that hurt him to the ground”
- Xiomara writes that poetry is lantern glowing in the dark. She compares her ability to write about her emotions and experiences through poetry as if it were a light in the darkness, showing the way, opening her up to be true to herself, to make friends, to take risks, and to be open to opportunities.
- "It has brought me the most light. And isn't that what a poem is? A lantern glowing in the dark"
- Xiomara depicts a very sympathetic view of her mother when she describes how hard her mother works scrubbing buildings in Queens and, exhausted, rides the subway two hours on multiple trains to get home. Xiomara respects how hard her mother works and the many sacrifices she makes for her family despite their differences and their contentious relationship.
- "Mami works . . . rides two trains in the early morning . . . her hands never stop moving . . ."
- THE POET X Figurative Language
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