.webp&w=1080&q=50)
18 pages • 36 minutes read
Sarah Kay"B" (If I Should Have a Daughter)
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2011A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Form and Meter
The poem is written in free verse and, as it is spoken-word poetry, is designed to mimic natural speech patterns. It thus has metrical variation within the lines that does not follow a specific rhythm. Rather than having a formal underlying structure, the work is meant to have a more informal, natural quality.
Figurative Language
This poem has several instances of figurative language that add layers of meaning to the text. For example, in lines 4-5, the mother states that she will paint the solar systems on the back of her daughter’s hands so that she will know the entirety of the universe before being able to say, “I know that like the back of my hand” (Line 5) The idiom “like the back of my hand” is taken and turned on its head, moving from something that is traditionally a figure of speech to something literal: images on the girl’s hands.
Another instance of figurative language occurs when the speaker relates that “this world is made out of sugar” (Line 46). This metaphor refers to world’s tendency to “crumble so easily” (Line 47), but the mother hopes the girl will not be too afraid to stick out her tongue and taste it. Thus, despite the tendency for things to fall apart, life has much to offer the girl if she would just give it a chance.
Allusion
Certain allusions are included that act as strong literary devices in the poem. The first is the reference to Wonder Woman found in lines 12-13. Wonder Woman is a superhero for whom any task is an easy endeavor, and she often swoops in to save the day. The narrator states that when her daughter realizes that Wonder Woman will not come to save her, she says she will make sure the girl knows that she will not “have to wear the cape all by herself” (Line 13). The girl is wearing the cape in this scenario, essentially becoming Wonder Woman, and she will thus have to learn to save herself, although her mother is also there for support.
Another allusion in the text is the reference in lines 32-33 to the classic 1961 song “Mama Said” by the Shirelles. “Mama Said” is a song literally about listening to the advice of one’s mother, so it is an apt reference for this poem. There will be days, the narrator explains, when the girl receives bruises and blisters, when she will have disappointment up to her knees, but these are the days, she says, when the girl should be the most grateful.
Narrative Voice
Another powerful literary device that features in this poem is the narrative voice. The poem’s entire premise stems from the narrator’s perspective as a potential future mother. All that is included in the poem is funneled through this point of view. The voice conveys a strong and singular focus, its purpose present in the first line: “If I should have a daughter” (Line 1). Thus, the advice in the poem feels like an intimate communication from a mother to and about her daughter.
