AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |
Back to Blog
Maya angelou quotes phenomenal woman4/11/2024 Next Section Quotes and Analysis Previous Section Glossary Buy Study Guide How To Cite in MLA Format GradeSaver "Phenomenal Woman (Maya Angelou poem) Themes". As the men and women depicted in the poem look at her curiously, it may be argued that some of these stares come from white people who judge the physical attributes of an African-American person. As Angelou is writing from her personal experience, she is actually describing what it feels like to be a phenomenal black woman. While race is not explicitly mentioned in the poem, one can also surmise that Angelou is also referring to cultural stereotypes of African-American women. The speaker explains that she does not resemble a “fashion model” she therefore does not adhere to what society deems beautiful. The poem addresses the definition of beauty as defined by society. The poem therefore celebrates the individuality of all human beings. Women cannot replicate her beauty either, as the speaker’s inner beauty is unique. She is proud of the fact that men cannot touch her “inner mystery”-the qualities that make up her personality and make her so special. She suggests that both her physical characteristics and her personality are what make her phenomenal. The speaker does not fit the standard conventions of beauty and rejoices in her uniqueness. The poem is also a testament to one’s individuality. She is also more powerful than other women who may disregard her beauty out of jealousy and act petty toward her. She has power over men in both a sexual and intellectual sense, as they find her alluring but fail to really see her inner beauty. She knows that her qualities make her very powerful, as she attracts the attention of both men and women and baffles them with her exquisite aura. The speaker is a highly confident woman who revels in both her physical and inner beauty. Neither the pretty women (line 1) she encounters nor the fellows. In each of the poem’s four stanzas, the speaker enumerates the various ways in which her attitude and comportment communicate her sense of self-worth and attractiveness. I rise I rise I rise.The poem as a whole celebrates female power. The tone of Phenomenal Woman is predominantly confident and prideful, though also defiant. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear I rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. Out of the huts of history’s shame I rise Up from a past that’s rooted in pain I rise I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. When you see me passing It ought to make you proud. You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I’ll rise.ĭoes my sexiness upset you? Does it come as a surprise That I dance like I’ve got diamonds At the meeting of my thighs? I don’t shout or jump about Or have to talk real loud. Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I’ll rise.ĭid you want to see me broken? Bowed head and lowered eyes? Shoulders falling down like teardrops, Weakened by my soulful cries?ĭoes my haughtiness offend you? Don’t you take it awful hard ’Cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines Diggin’ in my own backyard. You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I’ll rise.ĭoes my sassiness upset you? Why are you beset with gloom? ’Cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells Pumping in my living room.
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |