In his poem, "The Whipping," Robert Hayden depicts the cruelty of child abuse and its never ending cycle. Through diction, imagery, and repetition, he recreates the horrible experiences of the speaker, the boy, and the abusive woman.
In Gary Soto's poem, "Small Town with One Road," the speaker reflects on his experiences growing up in a small rural town and the interaction between poverty and dreams of riches.
In his poem, "No More Cliches," Octavio Paz argues against the typical love poem in praise of beauty and then promises women that his poem stands up for them in all their intelligence, power, and pain.