Paper 1 - The Unseen Commentary Rita Dove

Introduction: Thesis = In Rita Dove's Adolescence - II, Dove uses imagery, figurative language, and personification to describe the feelings a young girl, who was raped, in order to demonstrate how life is dark and empty after innocence is taken.

Body:
A: Imagery - Dirty old men lured her into a trap (possibly kidnapped) and raped her
1) Visual
+ Seal Men: eyes round as dinner plates and eyelashes like sharpened tines
~ men look at teen girls in ways they shouldn't
~ they look at her like she's something good to eat
~ they are no good, sharp, dangerous
~ glittering like ink
+ Setting - Dark and Scary
~ "it is night"
~ bathroom
~ sweat behind knees/baby breasts alert
~ blinds/moon, tiles
~ where men are sitting and standing
~ patting bodies
+ Actions - fear, disturbing
~ Clutch ragged holes
2) Olfactory
+ They bring the scent of licorice
~ smelly old men
~ tricksters
B: Figurative Language
1) Metaphors
+ seal men
~ seals are slick, slimy, black
+ "tiles quiver in pale strips"
~ she's quivering and pale because she's scared
+ "venetian blinds slice up the moon"
~dirty old men slice up her vagina
+ "ragged holes"
~ torn vagina
2) Similes
+ "Night rests like a ball of fur on my tongue"
~ mouth feels nasty, night is disturbing and uncomfortable for her now
+ "glittering like pools of ink under moonlight"
~ men look black and dirty and slick and slimy
C: Personification
1) Venetian blinds slicing moon
~ the beautiful sight and image of the moon is now ruined
~ her innocence was lost under the light of the moon and now the moon is dead to her
2) Night rests
~ night means nothing to her anymore
~ night is dead to her
~ her innocence was laid to rest at night

Conclusion: Restate Thesis = Rita Dove's use of imagery, figurative language, and personification reveal the feelings of a young girl after her innocence is lost and demonstrate how life is dark and empty after innocence is lost.