The cliff
In the first few lines of the seventh poem, the narrator describes how many enjoy sitting at the edge of a cliff and wondering how it will feel to take the risk and jump. While no one does it, the cliff remains used in the poem as a symbol representing the risks many are willing to take to become successful in life.
The three fingers
In the tenth poem, the narrator discuses the creative process and claims she has only three fingers. Even though she posses only three, she is more than happy with them and claims she does not need more than those three. The small number of fingers are used here as a symbol to represent the few things a person truly needs in order to live a happy and fulfilling life.
The toe
In the beginning of the 13th poem, the narrator describes a toe as leading the whole person. The narrator claims that wherever a toe went, the rest of the body followed even if it is not, not even by far, the most important part of the body. The toe becomes used here as a symbol, representing the way in which the ruling class controls the rest of the population even though they are not the ones who hold the most power in society.
Skipping breakfast
The narrator compares herself to an adolescent who frequently skips breakfast in the 14th poem. She then later exemplifies other ways through which she can be compared with a teenager who is rebelling and unable to be independent. Because of this, the act of skipping breakfast is used here as a symbol for a lack of maturity and lack of dependency which is visible most often in teenagers and children.
The edge of the knife
In the 15th poem, the narrator compares giving in to one’s desires with walking on the edge of a knife. Through this, the narrator transmits the idea that giving in to desires is something extremely dangerous which can have disastrous consequences for a person. The idea that giving in to one’s desires is dangerous is used here as a common motif, the narrator repeating this idea in the poem on multiple occasions.
