“Remember” is a poem about creation and recalling back the memories that built our morals and values. Joy Harjo loosely writes her poem using an informal and relaxed tone. It is clear that she speaks from the heart to help the audience relate to and enjoy the poem. By using this style of language, it shows familiarity to the readers’; which makes it easier to process. There are numerous lines ending in dramatic pauses (end-stopped lines) to make the reading of Harjo’s poem more affective and intense. An example of that being, “Remember the wind. Remember her voice. She knows the/origin of this universe” (Harjo, lines 17-18). I have analyzed three aspects of the poem in order to understand its meaning more accurately. Harjo’s use of ethos, nature,…show more content… In Harjos poem, she uses nature to remind the people of society to be thankful and honor nature. The many examples she uses in her poem about nature include: the birth of a newborn, sunrises and sunsets, descriptions about the earth, trees, animals, and much more. For example, “Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their/tribes, their families, their histories, too. Talk to them,/listen to them. They are alive poems./(Harjo, lines 14-16). By relating nature to human lives, it is easier for the reader to understand how important it is to respect their wildlife and landscape.
Harjo repeatedly uses metaphors many times during the poem “Remember”. Her metaphors stress the main theme of her poem, which relates to the creation perspective. For example, “Remember you are all people and all people/are you./Remember you are this universe and/this universe is you./Remember all is in motion, is growing, is you./(19-23). The opinion that she is stating in this quote is that people and nature has an enormous influence on who you are. It is common that we try to become something or someone that we love.
Overall, Harjo’s poem “Remember” has many meanings behind it including: creation, family, and nature. She successfully uses ethos, relates nature to life, and metaphors to help the reader relate to and reflect on the
