Coal

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1976

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Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Related Poems

“Father Son and Holy Ghost” by Audre Lorde (1976)

This poem appears before “Coal” in the book of the same title, as well as in The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde (1997). “Father Son and Holy Ghost” is about the death of Lorde’s father, as well as her relationship to him. The repeated image of the “grave” in the first and last lines is connected to the repeated image of “earth” (Lines 3 and 25) in “Coal.” Looking at the two poems together, the underground is a place of both death and birth.

“Who Said It Was Simple” by Audre Lorde (1973)

This poem appears in Lorde's book From a Land Where Other People Live. Like “Coal,” this poem discusses race. It also includes a more direct discussion of gender than “Coal,” as Lorde wonders about her liberation as a Black woman. “Who Said It Was Simple” is similar to “Coal” in that both contain elements from nature. The tree “roots” (Line 1) in “Who Said It Was Simple” can be compared to the “earth” (Lines 3 and 25) in “Coal.”

“From the House of Yemanjá” by Audre Lorde (1978)

This poem appears in Lorde’s book The Black Unicorn and takes a different, more autobiographical look at Lorde’s relationship to her mother. In “Coal,” maternal imagery was part of metaphor and similes about birds and the earth. In “From the House of Yemanjá,” Lorde explores colorism—a specific type of discrimination, occurring within the same racial or ethnic group, against people with darker skin tones. Lorde’s mother, who had lighter skin than her, did not see the beauty of dark skin that Lorde discusses in “Coal.” However, Lorde longs for her mother’s “blackness” (Line 29) and approval. In this desire for a mother who embraces Blackness, Lorde evokes Yemanjá (or Yemọja): the mother of the Orishas (spirits) in the Yoruba religion.

Further Literary Resources

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde (reprint 2007)

This is a collection of speeches and essays by Lorde. It includes some of her most famous quotes, such as “The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House,” which is foundational to understanding Lorde’s theories about revolutionary thought. Sister Outsider provides theoretical context for Lorde’s poetry. It aids the reader in understanding intersectional politics surrounding Blackness, feminism, lesbianism, and other marginalized identities.

Zami by Audre Lorde (1982)

Zami: A New Spelling of My Name is Lorde’s biomythography. This genre is a combination of memoir and myth. Lorde writes in a hybrid of poetry and prose to explore her past. Zami provides the reader of “Coal” more details about Lorde’s relationship with her mother, as well as her relationships with other women. Additionally, Zami explores Blackness and racism, which are also ideas that are explored in “Coal.”

“The Legacy of Audre Lorde” by Roxane Gay (2020)

This essay was originally published in the Selected Works of Audre Lorde published in 2020 and reprinted by the Paris Review. Roxane Gay looks at the impact that Lorde’s writing has had on her, a “Black queer woman,” and other Black women. “The Legacy of Audre Lorde” also examines the struggles that Black women have faced, and continue to face, since Lorde’s death. This information gives 21st-century context to the importance of “Coal” and other writings by Lorde.

Listen to Poem

Audre Lorde reads her poem “Coal” and other works

This is a recording posted on the Library of Congress website. It features Lorde reading her poems and offering commentary from the Recording Laboratory on February 23, 1977. “Coal” can be found at the 42 minute, 25 second mark in the recording.