THE LIVING PHOTOGRAPH - Summary of Poem

Now, we know who is the persona. So, let's explore the meaning of each stanza.

Stanza 1

The grandchild looks in the photograph and she saw that her grandmother looks tall though she is supposed to be small.

She saw her grandmother who is still youthful and healthy and has an upright back. In the photograph, her grandmother is wearing a white embroidered shirt with a pleated skirt and flat shoes. It shows that her grandmother is an over age lady.

The grandmother is really kind and loving person. 

The line ‘ Her big hand holds mine, white hand in black hand’ means that the writer and her grandmother come from different races.  Which means that the grandmother is an American and the grandchild is an African- American.

The persona’s grandmother was a very brave person because she was not afraid of death 

Stanza 2

The grandchild realized something. All that she can see is that her grandmother began aging and develops a hunched back.  She had become forgetful, senile, and sign of dementia. The grandmother passed away. The grandmother went somewhere grandmothers go and it is unimaginable.

Stanza 3

Although the grandmother has passed away, but the grandchild can still feel the presence of her grandmother. She can feel that her grandmother is living in her heart. Smiling widely in the picture when she was three years old. It treasures her because it was an unforgettable memory of the way her grandmother smiles before she became old and senile.


Let Her Go - Passenger