Beaming Notes
Your Guide to Literature

Old Folks Laugh Explanation: The first stanza of the poem, in tandem with the title, establishes the idea that old folks really know how to laugh. The poet suggests that having reached old age, people are not pressured by the need or feel the desire to pretend. Hence, they no longer “hold their lips this… Continue reading Old Folks Laugh Analysis by Maya Angelou: 2022

Women Work: Analysis This poem elucidates upon the predicament of women because it talks about how her world revolves around the domesticated tasks of cooking, cleaning, caring, and tending to everyone else, with little or no time for herself. The poem begins with an upbeat rhythmic tone and then graduated to being calm and relaxed.… Continue reading Women Work: Analysis: 2022

Maya Angelou’s Harlem Hopscotch describes the life of the ‘blacks,’ – the African-Americans in Harlem, New York – as a game of hopscotch. According to Angelou, life at Harlem resembles the game of hopscotch, primarily because both involve struggles. While the players of hopscotch struggle to win, the blacks in Angelou’s, poem struggle to survive.… Continue reading Harlem Hopscotch Analysis by Maya Angelou: 2022