Imagery

Behn uses the imagery of moths throughout this poem. The moths, then in turn, acquire other images, such as the "inner eyes." It is through the moths that the speaker of the poem learns to accept her friend's death. She talks to her friend through the moths. And in some way, the moths also represent her friends—she is not alone because the moths alight on her window. There are also hidden aspects or symbols associated with the moths that are not explicitly mentioned but are subliminally expressed through an accepted cultural understanding. These include the metaphor of rebirth. A moth was once a caterpillar, so it becomes a symbol of life and death. Behn does not mention this in any part of her poem. But readers may associate the moths with life and death. There is the life of the speaker and the death of the friend...