Song for a Surf-Rider  

 

   Often time’s readers lose interest in a story or poem because they find it boring. This could be because it doesn’t have any Figurative Language in it or the plot and Theme aren’t exciting. Also the reader just might not like it. However, in the poem “Song for a Surf-Rider” the author uses Figurative Language to keep the reader thinking. This helps the reader imagine what the story is saying and describing.

   One example of Imagery in the poem is “I ride the horse that is the sea. His mane of foam is wild and free”. In these sentences the author is comparing the horse to riding a surfboard on the waves. This affects the tone of the poem because the sea can be very unpredictable. In this part of the poem I felt the tone to be calm because that’s the feeling that the sea gives me, but in other parts of the poem the tone is wild and not so laid back.

   There is also another part of the poem that has some imagery that isn’t so calm. It says “ His eyes flash with an emerald fire”. Now when I hear that I think that it sounds kind of wild or exciting. Even when I think about it I would expect to see a fierce animal with a mad look in his eyes. The impact that this example of imagery has on a reader is probably big because this stanza could really get someone more interested in the poem and want to keep reading.  The use of strong words can bring excitement to the reader.

   The figurative language in this poem helps the reader paint a picture of what the author was thinking about.  If the author compared surfing to another object the reader may have had a different perspective.  By comparing surfing to riding a horse it allows the reader to bring in personal experiences and feelings to the poem.  Some experiences may be positive or negative.  Overall the tone of this poem was one of calm and excitement.  The imagery helped create this tone for me.

   As you can see from the examples of Figurative Language in the poem “Song for a Surf-Rider” the language an author uses influences the tone and meaning of the piece. Strong words and figurative language are just another way to keep the reader interested. Overall, I think that figurative language can really change a lot in a story like tone.