Leaving The Black Walnut Tree By Mary Oliver

Mary Oliver starts the poem by clarifying details about the conflict that has been troubling her and her mother. They are having financial issues, and the only way they can lessen their burden is if they sell the black walnut tree to the lumberman. However, the black walnut tree symbolizes so much more than a tree to Oliver and her mother; she doesn’t give much of an explanation about what the tree symbolizes, but we know that its roots go deep into their family history. At the end, they stay loyal to their ancestors and end up leaving the tree.
Oliver uses figurative language and other literary devices such as imagery, symbolism, and diction. She uses figurative language by declaring that even though it is so hard to take care of it, the tree