According to Faye (217), Joy introduces readers to the different symbols which she uses to portray her suffering in the course of winter. The article depicts her personal feelings about the cold. It is mentioned that Harjo personifies “wind and her wild ways” Stanza 1(1) in order to bring about the anger and contempt. The article goes ahead and compares the terror and anger with the use of similes. For instance, in the second stanza (1), the persona illustrates helplessness of the situation that they were experiencing by the use of such similes as, “like Coyote, like rabbit”. The coyote and the rabbit are used to postulate a state of confusion mixed with anger, which is, evidently clear when the family is distressed about where to spend the night.
According to Goodman (19), Joy uses imagery to depict diction as well as a tool to direct the readers in a way that portrays them as observers. This, in turn, exposes them to a broader perspective of the matter at hand. In this review, Joy supposedly uses the stylistic device of personification in order to depict the love and hope she had for a better future. The article mentions stanzas 1and 2 as having used the term “Grace” as a name of a person. In the first stanza (7), the persona indicates that despite the rejection and hostility, they still had to find “grace”. In the second stanza (5), the persona confirms to the readers that they found “grace” as soon as they managed to contain their terror and embrace laughter.
According to Cain (342), Joy is considered to be a poet who uses imagery, personification and symbolism to provoke the mental imagination of readers. The article goes ahead to outlay some of the imagery that the poet uses in her poem “Grace”. The poem uses personification to depict harshness brought by “wind” to the family as a whole. In the fourth stanza (3), the persona indicates that while she and “wind” parted ways, she still was crazy owing to the fact that the subsequent season was not going to be in anyway better. The persona also uses symbolism when naming places. In still the same stanza line (3), the persona identifies the lake as “Leech Lake”. The article describes leech as an inhibitor to her happiness. The article also mentions the use of symbolism especially that the persona indicates that they could understand the language of the animals. This indicates the level of desperation that the family was undergoing.
According to Baker & Womanck (584), the use of imagery and symbolism is vast in the poem “Grace”. The poet uses names of places and people to identify with non-living matters. The article recognizes the use of “Lake Leech” and the name “Grace” as names used in identifying with non-living matter as a whole. It is while “grace” is used over and over again in the poem to depict a state of hope and happiness as the use of the name. “Lake Leech” is attributed to a non-living matter that depicts a state of hopelessness and despair altogether. The use of personification is meant to paint a picture of the events that the persona underwent in the course of the winter season.
According to Tamirta (212), the poet uses elements of symbolism and similes to portray the changes in the conditions affecting the persona. The persona speaks of “grace” as though it was a person, and when they find her, they find solace and happiness. According to the article the poet personifies the sun so that it struggles to break the ice, stanza 2(4). This is used to portray the difficult experienced by the extraterrestrial body to ease the cold of the winter. It also uses the sun to symbolize the magnitude, which was experienced as a whole. The poet continues to bring forth the element of hope as when the “sun” finally breaks the ice so does the “grace” and the happiness is found.