Can you help me find the figurative language in this poem?

Question

  I am fourteen

         and my skin has betrayed me

         the boy I cannot live without 

         still sucks his thumb

[5]  in secret

         how come my knees are 

         always so ashy

         what if I die

         before morning

[10] and momma’s in the bedroom

         with the door closed.

         I have to learn how to dance

         in time for the next party

         my room is too small for me

[15] suppose I die before graduation

         they will sing sad melodies

         but finally

         tell the truth about me

         there is nothing I want to do

[20] and too much

         that has to be done

         and momma’s in the bedroom

         with the door closed.

          Nobody even stops to think

[25] about my side of it

           I should have been on Math Team

          my marks were better than his

          why do I have to be 

          the one

[30] wearing braces

          I have nothing to wear tomorrow

         will I live long enough

         to grow up

         and momma’s in the bedroom

[35] with the door closed.

Answer 1

Figurative language is a type of creative language used in poetry and prose. It helps to draw you into the work and give you a connection with the story. Here are the main types of figurative language:

Similies: a comparison using the word "like" or "as" (Her lips were as red as a rose)

Metaphors: a comparison without "like" or "as" that sounds more literal (Her lips were a rose)

Alliteration: the same beginning sound in several words (Polly's pocket held a petit butterfly named Pete)

Personification: giving inanimate objects human qualities (the moon smiled)

Hyperbole: an exaggeration to emphasize an idea (there were millions of flies in the air)

Repetition: repeating a word or phrase for emphasis

In this poem, we have:

Similies: none

Metaphors: none

Alliteration: skin, still, sucks, secret (lines 2-5)

Personification: "my skin has betrayed me"

Hyperboles: none

Repetition: "momma’s in the bedroom / with the door closed"