Analyzing the poem "Guilt" by Leona Gom

Subject  > Literature Research Papers  > North American  > Poetry

The poem, "Guilt," by Leona Gom addresses four examples of memories that bear a burden of guilt within them which the narrator can't get rid of. In this poem, the narrator, who is speaking in the second person, is most likely a female because a mother usually doesn't give a set of dishes to a male. The structural layout in this poem suggests that a progression of ideas is taking place. The poem is divided into two stanzas; the first stanza indicates struggle and conflict, while the second stanza, on the other hand, indicates despair and is relatively smaller than the first stanza. The purpose of this is to show how big the burden of guilt the narrator is carrying around. In ...

... the poem. For example, in the second stanza, the narrator says, "It's too late now to say you're sorry." This gives an impression of remorse, regret and guilt expressed by the narrator. Gom uses alliteration when the narrator describes the mother with, "her hurt face turning away." She used the letter H in the first two words to emphasize how the mother's feeling is being hurt by the narrator. Imagery is used throughout the poem and is expressed with nouns and adjectives like "set of dishes," "move around," "argument with your father," "finding it in your room," "little knots," and "daily rounds." This use of imagery assists in the creation of the remorse, sorrow, and guilt throughout the

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