Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde 1 I am fourteen 2 and my skin has ...

5. Tone and RhythmThe tone of the whole poem is gloomy; it sounds like the speaker is sulking about her lifeas a teenager. The poem’s tone works nicely with the rhythm of the poem. Since thereare quite a lot of words with s’s, r’s and t’s, readers are forced to read the poem in a slowand deliberate manner. All in all, the slow pace and dragged tone of the poem supportsthe message of the poem, that adolescents is a tough time for adolescents becausethey’re trying to find their place in society.6. ConclusionOverall, “Hanging Fire” communicates that adolescence is a period full of struggle andinsecurities to its audience, the readers. Although Audre Lorde admitted to have writtenthe poem from the perspective of an African­American teenage girl, I feel that this poemgeneralizes the adolescent experience for every adolescent. This is because the desireto belong, fear of other people’s judgements, and feeling neglected from time to time aremundane feelings that are not foreign to adolescents. I believe that through the poem,Audre Lorde has managed to transport its readers into the shoes of an adolescent, andthis is interesting considering that Lorde was a 50­year­old woman when she wrote thepoem. Lorde found a way of thinking like a 14­year­old in a 50­year­old body.To conclude, although having “hanging fire” as the title of the poem might seem uncanny,“hanging fire” is actually an idiom that means to delay or wait. In the context of attitude, itmeans to adopt the “wait and see” attitude when handling a problem. This title fits thepoem nicely because that’s exactly what the speaker is doing, she’s waiting to seewhat’s in store for her after adolescence.“what if I die / before morning” [line 8 ­ 9]“suppose I die before graduation” [line 15]“will I live long enough / to grow up” [line 30 ­ 31]“my room is too small for me” [line 14]