Dream Deferred

I really enjoyed this poem, even though it was relatively simple and straight forward. The author uses many similes while pondering the fate of a dream deferred. He uses images of "a raisin in the sun," "a sore," "rotten meat," "a syrupy sweet," and "a heavy load" to create different possibilities for this dream cast aside. Although all of these similes are effective in their ability to conjure images of this withering dream, the most powerful line was the last. "Or does it explode?" This is the only metaphor in the poem, and its placement at the end gives it a much stronger effect. The previous instances of figurative language were unpleasant, but relatively calm images. This last line, especially with the emphasis from the italics, adds almost a violent power to the ending. The word explode has so much more destructive force than "dry up," "fester," "stink, "crust," or "sags." Knowing a little of the author's background makes me wonder if this poem has a personal connection to him, if he was writing from experience.