December
In the poem entitled "Flame Heart’’ the narrator talks about how he can no longer remember the good times he had in his former country but how he still remembers December and the elements associated with that time. December is used here as a symbol for the bad times the narrator had in his former country and thus when the narrator claims he remember December he wants to transmit the idea how he still remembers the bad things that happened in his life.
The fruits I grew up with
One of the common motifs in the poems is the idea that the narrator mentions the fruits and vegetables he used to see and eat while he was in his home country. In America, those objects became a rare sight the narrator longed to see and a sight he appreciated because it reminded him of home. These elements are thus important because are linked with the narrator’s past and his former life.
Throne
In the poem "Mulatto’’ the narrator talks about the relationship he has with his father and how the relationship is a tense one. The narrator claims he will not let his father rule the throne on his own and will fight for it instead. The throne is used here as a symbol for the supremacy the white population had during the time when the poem was written and thus by claiming that he will fight for the throne the narrator transmits the idea that he will not let himself be oppressed by the white population.
White
The narrator was a black man living in America during a time when the black population was not seen with kind eyes and were abused. The narrator described his experience as a black man through his writings and he portrayed whiteness as being evil and something that only causes damage. Because of this, we can assume that whiteness is used here as a symbol for evil.
Fighting attitude
Another common motif we can find in the poems is the narrator’s attitude towards problems. The narrator refuses to give up and he claims he will do everything he can to win and stay above everyone. This motif appears in two poems, "America’’ and "Mulatto’’.
