Definition: The speaker is the person or thing that the poem is in the point-of-view of. Sometimes the speaker is the poet; other times, the speaker is imaginary.
Example:
Well son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair, It's had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up, And places with no carpet on the floor Bare.
—"Mother to Son," Langston Hughes
In this poem, the speaker is imaginary; a mother is speaking to her son.
Significance: Speakers are important because it allows poets to write poems in perspectives other than their own. Understanding who/what the speaker is in the poem gives you a better understanding of what the poem's meaning and purpose is.
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