Final answer:
In the provided excerpts, the metaphor 'light' generally symbolizes knowledge, literacy, understanding, and love. It represents an illuminating force that brings clarity, guidance, and hope to the person experiencing it.
Step-by-step explanation:
The metaphor 'light' in the passage above refers to knowledge, literacy, or a sense of enlightenment and understanding, which brings a form of emotional sustenance and comfort, akin to the way physical light illuminates darkness. In the context of the various excerpts, 'light' is repeatedly associated with positive qualities such as love, wisdom, clarity, and hope.
It often symbolizes a guiding force or a beacon of truth that dispels confusion or ignorance, much like a lighthouse guiding a ship through a storm or fog. The metaphor can also represent the transformative power of education, as seen in references to Helen Keller's experience where light equates to the awakening of her mind through learning.
The provided excerpts demonstrate how 'light' can be a versatile metaphor, used in literature to express different aspects of the human experience. It may refer to the physical presence of light, the emotional response to understanding, or the hopeful yearning for knowledge and truth.