The Climax of "I Want You Women Up North to Know"

Lines 85-97 of Tillie Olsen's first published poem "I Want You Women Up North to Know" contain the climactic turning point of this poem, and the language and form reflect this change. Instead of being humble and disjointed victims who remain mostly anonymous, the workers are transformed into an angry and unified group of distinct individuals. This shift in mood is accomplished by three devices: imagery, grouping, and capitalization of proper names.
The imagery in this passage helps turn the tone of the poem from victimization to anger. In addition to fire images, the overall language is c…