In Emily Dickinson’s poem, she uses metaphor, likening the notion of hope to a bird that flies despite “the storm”, the cold of “the chilliest land” and the isolation of “the strangest sea” and because such metaphorical bird “flies” inside one’s “soul”, such hope is personified. In Finding Flight, the process is similar although here the text is not a poem but a story in prose. The device of remembrance of the figure of the late grandfather turns a hummingbird into a symbol of hope for the narrator. There is no metaphor here but actually symbolism. The hummingbird symbolizes both hope and the memory of the beloved grandfather who has “passed”. The bird “gives hope” both to the grandfather and the granddaughter. The plot structure is the same for both works, a reflection on the luminosity of hope, then a period of hardship that tests hope and then the resilience of hope despite all the troubles and darkness of life.
