The Golden Brooch Figurative Language

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The second stanza of the poem focuses on a different aspect of the mother’s personality. Although Millay is addressing her mother’s death, the tone is not sentimental. In lines 5-6, the speaker uses the small detail of the mother’s brooch to illustrate her mother’s personality: the brooch is symbolic of some of her mother’s characteristics, “The golden brooch my mother wore/She left behind for me to wear” (Millay, lns 5-6). The fact that the speaker’s mother wore a golden brooch displays that she acknowledged finery: the brooch symbolizes the fact that the narrator’s mother had a good sense of style and was steadfast and brave, in addition to being feminine and beautiful, just like the brooch. The golden brooch accommodates as a contrast to

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