a wall of fire rising

In the poem Set This Book On Fire! Jimmy Santiago Baca expresses an urge to be truthful in what one writes regardless of its’ affects. Baca uses intense metaphors and harsh realities to speak against writers, who edit their work to relate to a higher class of readers; or write about experiences they have not experienced.
The first type of poet Baca speaks against is the one who alters their work in order to gain monetary revenue. Baca slams these poets with several metaphors like:
The last thing we need is more toothless tigers
stalking thousand-dollar checks from sympathetic patrons
of first-class airlines and four-star hotels. (78)

Tigers without teeth cannot hunt for them...