Question

Read the poem "Heat" by H.D. in Explorations in Literature.

In “Heat,” H.D. uses hyperbole when she describes heat that actually prevents fruit from falling.

How does this hyperbole affect the poem’s meaning?


It captures the weakness of the fruit.


It expresses the worry the speaker feels about the fruit rotting.


It hints that the speaker is being playful rather than serious.


It emphasizes how intense and powerful the heat is.

Answer 1

It emphasizes how intense and powerful the heat is.

Answer 2

A hyperbole is a figure of speech that adds emphasis by the use of extreme exaggeration. Is not meant to be literal.

Based on this definition on hyperbole, the correct answer is: It emphasizes how intense and powerful the heat is.

The author is making an emphasis on the heat and it uses hyperbole to exaggerate the intensity of it. She also tells the reader how the heat is affecting the fruit, another example of the exaggeration and extreme emphasis on it.