Imagery of a Frog
Although unexpected, this imagery sticks with the reader after bell hooks introduces it in one of her essays. In the essay with this imagery, bell hooks is talking about how oppressed people have been passive long enough. They need to use rage and urgency to change society. As shown in the metaphor of the frog in the pan of boiling water, the frog represents society and the boiling water represents societal pressure. If you add social pressure, i.e. boiling water, all at once, the frog which represents society, will move. In this way the imagery of the frog is used. It also seems like bell hooks used the imagery of a frog in her essays to represent society because frogs can be thought of as inherently "dumb" creatures and will not do anything to change on their own unless forced to by their external circumstances, a message that could also be applied to society.
Imagery of Rage as Red
Red is a color we associate with bloodshed and anger, and bell hooks associated red with the same ideas. Throughout her essays, we saw instances where she was "seeing red" and a deep feeling of rage welled up inside of her. Because of all the hatefulness she had to go through because of racial and sexual discrimination, bell hooks wanted her oppressors to feel the same pain, which is the source of this rage she felt. Seeing red represented that rage was overtaking her and the imagery of red was often used in the texts. One example is when she was at the airport sitting next to a white man and could feel her rage building up as she thought about his complacency in societal discrimination.
Imagery of Whiteness
The imagery of whiteness is seen throughout most of the essays. bell hooks places emphasis on the lives of white people living in society around her and the whiteness they represent. This imagery reflects the current situation bell hooks is in and the disparity between black people and minorities like herself, and white people. The privileges and rights white people had an the freedoms they were able to exercise, most of which minorities weren't able to do, further strengthens this imagery and is a source of anger for bell hooks and a reason for her to fight for equality.
Imagery of Boiling Water
As mentioned before, boiling water is imagery that first appears the the essay where bell hooks talks about passiveness and how people fighting for equality have become too passive. She explains this with the metaphor of the frog in the pot of boiling water, where boiling water is imagery representative of societal pressure. This imagery is seen a few times in the essays and usually causes the object or person affected by it to move or change their actions. The boiling water stings and moves things, much like how bell hooks wishes to move society to accept black women and eradicate sexual and racial discrimination.
