Without writing, you wouldn’t be reading this. Without writing, we would live in the present and never know the happenings of the past. The message of the poem “Here Yet Be Dragons” by Lucille Clifton is to imagine a world without poetry and numerous other forms of writing. She uses specific contrast, line breaks and metaphors to prove this point.
Something I’ve learned during this poetry unit is that poems can be anything and everything, but every poetic device, line break, and word is chosen for a specific purpose. “Here Yet Be Dragons” certainly demonstrates this idea. When I first read this poem, I was very confused, especially by the first sentence because it makes no sense in today’s world. so many languages have fallen off of the edge of the world into the dragon’s mouth. (Clifton, pg 132)
However, this is purposeful. The languages mentioned are the languages of writing (including poetry), and how, in the future, they will fall off, or no longer exist, in our world. The dragon is a metaphor for how poems will one day be fantasy. This metaphor summarizes the story of the poem which is why Clifton incorporated it into the title.
One device Clifton uses effectively in this poem is contrast in tone. The first half of the poem has an unrealistic, fantasy tone as a result of words such as
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This reminds me of other poems by Lucille Clifton that I’ve read: “Miss Rosie” and “Won’t You Celebrate With Me.” There is no capitalization, no rhyme, and some line breaks in the middle of sentences and phrases to allow for no rhythm. Also, the general theme of her poems relates to overcoming some hardship. There is contrast between the first and second half’s tone. Clifton uses this style to great effect, and that’s why I find her poems so extraordinary, especially “Here Yet Be