Question

write a literary analysis paragraph explaining how acevedo uses poetic devices to show the impact of ms. galiano on the speaker’s confidence and self - expression. in your response, be sure to: - identify one poetic device (such as imagery, repetition, tone). - use at least one piece of textual evidence from the poem - explain how the device helps reveal ms. galiano’s influence on the speaker’s growth or identity

Explanation:

This analysis focuses on Elizabeth Acevedo's The Poet X, using imagery to trace the speaker Xiomara's growth. The textual evidence shows Ms. Galiano's role in fostering Xiomara's confidence to claim her voice as a poet.

Answer:

In Elizabeth Acevedo’s The Poet X, Acevedo uses tactile and visual imagery to illustrate how Ms. Galiano nurtures the speaker Xiomara’s confidence and self-expression. When Ms. Galiano first hands Xiomara a blank notebook, the poem describes the object as "a skin unwritten, waiting / for my nails to break its silence" (Acevedo, line 47-48). This imagery frames the notebook as a space of possibility, one that Ms. Galiano intentionally offers to Xiomara, who has long felt her words are unwelcome or unheard. Before this, Xiomara only wrote in secret, hiding her work from her family; Ms. Galiano’s gift transforms writing from a forbidden act into a sanctioned, tangible practice. The "unwritten skin" metaphor also links Xiomara’s poetic voice to her own identity—by encouraging her to mark the notebook, Ms. Galiano teaches Xiomara to claim her right to take up space and speak her truth. As Xiomara fills the pages, the imagery of the notebook evolves, later described as "heavy with the weight of all I’d dared to say" (Acevedo, line 121), showing how Ms. Galiano’s initial act of trust helps Xiomara grow from a quiet, self-doubting teenager into a poet who owns her voice.