Imagery and metaphors

In this section, we provide you with some specific examples you can use when you analyse the poem “The Brown Man’s Burden” by Henry Du Pré Labouchère for imagery and metaphors and other figures of speech.

Anaphora

In the poem, two consecutive lines start with the same word. This figure of speech is called anaphora. In this particular case, the anaphora is used to show the multiple ways in which imperialists try to impose their rule over other peoples:

“With Maxims up to date.
With shells and dumdum bullets” (ll. 12-13)

Contrast and comparisons

Although the narrator does not use “compare and contrast” markers, there are still some inherent comparisons made between ‘the white man’ and the colonised people, designed to show the racist views colonial powers have ...