Summary Of Coyote Goes To Toronto

“Coyote Goes to Toronto” is a didactic poem written by Thomas King which demonstrates a unique application of literary devices. The poem is written in a stylistic way in which the author portrays an important life lesson he has learned through “Coyote,” depicted in third person perspective. Within this literary work, King is able to effectively use a variety of poetic elements to illustrate his message about the challenges that Indigenous peoples face outside of reserves, in a society led by dominant cultures. This literal meaning is achieved by King’s powerful choice of symbolism, changes in rhythmic pattern, and extensive use of repetition.
To begin with, there is a very clear example of strong symbolism all throughout the poem, helping to portray the author’s message about the difficulty for Indigenous minorities to integrate themselves in a diverse city like Toronto. King, who is an advocate for First Nations causes himself,

For example, the phrases in the second stanza, “FAMOUS streets” and “FAMOUS corners” represent a clear pattern of repetition in the poem. I believe that the author wants to indicate that the protagonist came from a small town outside of Toronto, where he was not exposed to fame. Another example of repetition that contributes to the literal meaning is the eighth stanza, “So that RAIN came along. So that WIND came along. So that HAIL came along. So that SNOW came along.” In fact, I think that the elements listed represent groups of people from Coyote’s reserve that once recognized her before she drastically changed herself in Toronto. This powerful last example of repetition also has the ability to capture the reader’s attention to think and interpret these elements in a figurative way, which ultimately ties back to the author’s message about being an Indigenous