Audre Lorde was known as the “black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet” who stood up and spoke out when it came to social issues that mattered to her. As a poet, she used her poetry to voice her opinion and encourage others, who may be experiencing something similar, to compare the situation to their own lives. Lorde asserts her heritage and strong willpower in her poem “Coal” to voice her personal relationship to society. This will be proven through the analysis of the poem’s reference to coal and diamond, the use of descriptive diction, and the contrast between the concepts of natural and
