Maya Angelou

A Phenomenon
Maya Angelou: Introduction to Early Life

 Maya Angelou (known as Marguerite Annie Johnson)born in April 4, 1928.

 Maya was an American poet, and a civil rights activist.
 Author of seven biographies, three book of essays, several poems and is credited with a list of
plays, movies and television shows over the course of fifty years. The very first poem of hers
written at the age of 17 I Know why a caged bird sings (1969)she communicates with fragments of
her personal life. Angelou arose to a world of appreciation as her works shed light on minorities
and sex workers. Her works portray the struggle, dominance and oppression faced by African-
American individuals in America.
 She joined the Harlem Writers Guild, participated in Civil Rights Movement with Martin Luther
King Jr. and Malcom X. In 1993 Maya Angelou recited her poem “On the Pulse of Morning” at
US President Bill Clinton’s inauguration. She received Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011
from former president Barack Obama for her ascend in her career as she promotes strength,
humanity and compassion.
 Maya Angelou: Influence of Life in relation to
writing style- Case In point
My crime is “heroes, dead and The variety of our skin tones can His tune is heard on the distant hill for
gone,” dead Vesey, Turner and confuse, bemuse, delight, brown and the caged bird sings of freedom.
Gabriel. dead Malcom, Marcus, pink and beige and purple, tan and
Martin King. blue and white.
-Human Family -I Know why the caged bird sings
-My Guilt

 Angelou uses free verse poetry method to express her feelings to the reader.
 Usage of Onomatopoeia in Phenomenal Women “The click of my heals” description in
relation to the speakers voice, who makes a happy sound.
 Maya Angelou: Phenomenal Woman
Stanza 1

It’s in the reach of my arms,

Pretty women wonder where my secret
lies. The span of my hips,   

I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion The stride of my step,   

model’s size   
The curl of my lips.   
But when I start to tell them,
I’m a woman
They think I’m telling lies.
Phenomenally.

I say, Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me.
Maya Angelou: Introduction & Tone

 “Phenomenal Woman” begins with an appreciative tone towards the audience and springs
a hopeful light on society norms in terms of beauty.
 It establishes two entities, the protagonist and antagonist. The protagonist being, the
author/speaker and the latter represent people living in a controlled society. The poem at
first throws a direct hit at the men and women in the word and the stereotypes they have
trapped themselves, and others in.
 “I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size…” (Phenomenal Woman) Maya
proudly declares that neither she has the figure that allures or captures the attention of
people nor she is particularly feeling apprehensive about it, a complete opposite of what
the antagonist feels. She announces she has a secret flair that is her confidence, the way
she beams of positive light and in the way she carries herself. The stanza concludes with
her personality as an embodiment of womanliness.
Phenomenal Woman: Stanza 2: Mastery

Stanza 2

I walk into a room It’s the fire in my eyes,   

Just as cool as you please,    And the flash of my teeth,   

And to a man,
The swing in my waist,   
The fellows stand or
And the joy in my feet.   
Fall down on their knees.   
I’m a woman.
Then they swarm around me,

A hive of honey bees.   

Phenomenally.

I say, Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me.
Metonymy
 In this stanza, we see men in their prime responding to the allure and mysterious way the
phenomenal woman in the poem carries her self and her beauty.
 They are compelled to leave their day to day business and blindly follow the phenomenal
woman. Using a metaphoric expression “Then they swam around me/ A hive of honey
bees….” This line in particular enlightens enthusiasm the phenomenal woman faces from
the opposite gender despite eliminating gender and society norms.
 She seems to have found her own sense of beauty which is now widely appreciated, but
remains questioned to which she deduces is in the way she feels joy about herself and in
the way she moves about the world.
 Maya Angelou uses a literary device (Metonymy) to describe that most of the reason why
people are attracted to are the way she smiles and finds happiness in her self “And the
flash of my teeth…” (Phenomenal Women) which leads the reader to arrive on this hidden
conclusion on their own, that is the final destination on the road to self-discovery:
acceptance.
Phenomenal Woman: Stanza 3- Elucidation

Stanza 3

Men themselves have wondered    It’s in the arch of my back,   

What they see in me. The sun of my smile,

They try so much
The ride of my breasts,
But they can’t touch
The grace of my style.
My inner mystery.
I’m a woman.
When I try to show them,   

They say they still can’t see.   

Phenomenally.

I say, Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me.
Phenomenal Woman: An Enigma
 The focus of this stanza, is again on men and their quest to understand their attraction
towards the phenomenal woman.
 She indicates to the reader, that it shows both the exterior and interior playing a role in
what makes the phenomenal women, a phenomenon.
 The antagonist fails to see the personality and mystery that represents her inner beauty, to
which Maya Angelou mocks the reader for having one single centered opinion on the
forms of beauty.
 The Poem portrays men are looking for something that cannot be associated with common
six senses.
 “The sun of my smile…./The grace of my style” establishing the phenomenal woman’s
essence, her personality and her humanity being her beauty secret.
Phenomenal Woman: Stanza 4- Wind-Up

Stanza 4

Now you understand It’s in the click of my heels,   

Just why my head’s not bowed.    The bend of my hair,   

I don’t shout or jump about the palm of my hand,   

Or have to talk real loud.    The need for my care.

When you see me passing, I’m a woman.

It ought to make you proud. Phenomenally.

I say, Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me.
Final Interpretation
 The final stanza reveals the author now holding a direct conversation with the reader, who
were an audience to the happenings in the first three stanzas.
 She breaks the most common associated stereotype most African-American women face
i.e. using harsh/loud voice. She says she is unafraid of the accusations thrown at her and
finds no need to be abrasive. Her inner strength makes her undefeatable making women in
her community feel proud when they come across her.
 The final lines of the stanza exclaim that she is proud of the person she chose to become,
wants to stay physically prominent in the world. She concludes by respecting womanhood
along the lines of “The need for my care…” and claims that her strength comes from her
inner self, she is strong as she is and there is no need to follow in the footsteps of society
and it’s false steps on similarity.
 The message is beautifully portrayed throughout the entire poem that the reader should
always regard their individual self with positive thoughts and feelings. True beauty isn’t
what is seen, it represents what is felt.
Maya Angelou: Historical Setting of Phenomenal Woman and
Author Conclusion
 Phenomenal Women was first issued in Maya Angelou’s “And Still I Rise” (1978). The
poem was previously mentioned in cosmopolitan magazine along with her “Just for a
time”, after the fantastic appraise she received, she began reciting and performing the
poem Infront of audiences.
 Phenomenal Women conveys the message of self-love and celebrating acceptance of one’s
persona, while challenging societal stereotypes, in the end winning from an unannounced
battle, emerging victorious.
 The poem represents and appreciates self-discovery. Marking society as an ultimate
distraction on searching for true happiness and acceptance.
 Angelou died on the dawn of May 28, 2014 at the age of 86. The entire world including the
literature communities and world leaders, mourned her and remembered to carry out the
hopeful message she always wanted the world to remember by.
References

 A brief study of finding the characterization of phenomenal women written by Maya

Angelou can be obtained from
http://publications.anveshanaindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/A-BREIF-STUDY-
ON-FINDING-THE-CHARACTERIZATION-OF-PHENOMENAL-WOMAN-
WRITTEN-BY-MAYA-ANGELOU.pdf
 Oral representation on Phenomenal Women by Maya Angelou by Mychal Anderson can be
obtained from /hnm4h50jmqne/oralpresentation-on-phenomenal-women-by-maya-angelou
 Phenomenal Women, Poetry foundation can be obtained from
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48985/phenomenal-woman