Light (Symbol)
In "Poetry Is Not a Luxury," Lorde writes that “The quality of light by which we scrutinize our lives has direct bearing upon the product which we live, and upon the changes which we hope to bring about through those lives.” Light symbolizes a conscious, clear approach to reality. Lorde suggests that poetry, like light, can have a clarifying effect, making a person's once-obscure surroundings comprehensible. These essays frequently describe light as an effective but almost painful force, as in "The Transformation of Silence Into Language and Action," in which Lorde writes, "And it is never without fear—of visibility, of the harsh light of scrutiny and perhaps judgment..."
Dragon (Symbol)
Lorde often symbolically portrays America as a dragon, particularly when she is describing its brutal or unequal aspects. In "Notes From a Trip to Russia," she writes that "we, Black Americans, exist alone in the mouth of the dragon," while in "Sexism: An American Disease in Blackface," she refers to the country as "this capitalist dragon within which we live." The use of this visceral and easily visualized symbol makes clear how urgent and physically threatening these oppressions can be. Readers are guided to think of racism, sexism, and capitalism as very real enemies rather than intangible abstractions. Furthermore, dragons are imaginary creatures and can therefore be freely reimagined to suit any story. Thus Lorde's symbolic use of them implies that American racism and capitalism are wily and adaptable, able to adjust to a changing world.
Mothers and Fathers (Symbol)
Though these essays frequently discuss the everyday realities of raising children (or being a child under a parent's control), they also employ both mothers and fathers as symbolic representations of other, much more abstract and complex concepts. In short, mothers in these pages are associated with Blackness, nurturing, mystery, and instinct, while fathers are associated with formality, whiteness, judgment, and repression. This is most prominent in "Poetry is Not a Luxury," in which Lorde argues that each woman has an internal "Black mother," who "whispers in our dreams: I feel, therefore I can be free," as well as an internal (or internalized) white father, who insists, "I think, therefore I am."
The Master's Tools and The Master's House (Symbol)
In "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House," Lorde argues that it is impossible to meaningfully change an unjust society (symbolically represented by the "Master's House") with movements that ape that society's racism, sexism, homophobia, or other bigotries. These bigotries are symbolically described as "the Master's Tools"—instruments for keeping the ruling class in power and retroactively justifying that power imbalance. Furthermore, Lorde continues while she articulates this symbol, the loss of these tools should not sadden or frighten activists, since they only appear useful to those who cynically or unimaginatively "define the master’s house as their only source of support"—that is, those who think of activism as a way to simply alter who gets to be in power, rather than disrupt the power structure entirely.
King Mithridates (Allegory)
In "Eye to Eye, Black Women, Hatred, and Anger," Lorde writes, "Old King Mithridates learned to eat arsenic bit by bit and so outwitted his poisoners, but I'd have hated to kiss him upon his lips!" According to legend, the very-paranoid King Mithridates of Pontus ate small amounts of poison in order to immunize himself against potential future poisonings. Lorde turns this story into an allegory describing the way that Black women, fearing hatred from one another, 'immunize' themselves by feeling and expressing their own hatred. In the case of Mithridates, Lorde suggests, the method might 'work,' but it makes the individual who uses it poisonous and unpleasant. Hatred, by extension, isn't worth it. It might keep others from being able to hurt you, Lorde hints, but it also keeps you from developing meaningful relationships with them.
