Summary and Analysis of Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou: 2022

The poet again reasserts her phenomenal existence. She says that she never does anything outrageous to draw attention.  She does not need to talk aloud or to jump here n there to get attention. She wins attention just to be what she is. The click of her heel, the ‘bend’ of her hair, her caring palm make her self-sufficient. She is complete since she is a woman and she needs not to gloss up herself to soar above. This audacity of thought, this proud claim, this supreme confidence makes her a phenomenal woman.

Poetic Devices in Phenomenal Women by Maya Angelou

Metaphor

  1. “Then they swarm around me

A hive of honey bees.”
In the above line, the poet compares desiring men to bees flocking after the poet for her unique charm.
2. “It’s the fire in my eyes.”
The poet here uses a very commonplace metaphor of fire that defines poet’s passion.
3.“The sun of my smile.”
Here, Maya Angelou has compared the warmth of her smile to that of the sun.
Refrain: “I am woman,
Phenomenally.”
This line gets repeated in all the stanzas of the poem which asserts n reasserts poet’s unflinching confidence about her phenomenal identity.
*A refrain is a line, a part of a line or a group of lines which is repeated in the course of a poem, sometimes with little changes usually at the end of a stanza. The last four lines of the first three stanzas of the poem, “Phenomenal Woman” should be noted,-
Personification:“And the joy in my feet”
In the above phrase, joy is compared with a subservient person throwing himself at the feet of the poet.
Alliteration: The repetition of the consonant sounds at the beginning of words is called alliteration. Examples of alliteration from the poem are,
“pretty woman wonder”
“they say they still can’t see”
“the sun of my smile”

Phenomenal Woman Tone

The voice that runs through the poem is that of a confident woman who celebrates her body without any inhibition.
Imagery: Two daunting images consolidate the upbeat mood of the poem. First one is men like bees flock after the poet who denounces all the beauty stereotypes and prefers to lead her life in her own way. The second image is men coming onto their knees in their desperate persuasion of a woman who downplays all social conventions and becomes quite an enigma to them.
Irony: The poem has a deep ironical voice. American market constructs their own standard of beauty which only celebrates fair colour, sharp features and blue eyes. Here Maya Angelou makes a strong case for those who do not fall into this category. Herself being a representative of Afro-American origin, she lampoons the conceived notions of beauty and finds joy in her liberated self which defies any structure.
 

The poem starts with biting response from a poet who is supremely self-confident. She does not care to fit into the mould of beauty that popular culture constructs. Despite the absence of a scintillating figure, she draws attention from her male suitors. Surprised by her popularity, many women ask her the reason. In reply, the poet lampoons all the beauty stereotypes and asserts the supremacy of her liberated self. She does not have a qualm of doubt about her supremacy and never really bothers to change herself to draw more male attention. Her nonchalance, her rejection of stereotype, her supreme air of confidence becomes a mystery which her male suitors cannot demystify. This inability to decode the enigma makes them more vulnerable to the poet. The poet never does anything outrageous to draw attention and it is her subtlety of action, the exuding confidence, the assuring smile, the light movement of feet, the sharp smile make her a winner. You can also take a look at this Video Playlist to Learn More about this poem in an audio-visual format!

Go through the Solved Questions

Maya Angelou’s Phenomenal Woman celebrates the spirit of womanhood. Discuss.

How is the poem ‘Phenomenal Woman’ a reflection of the poet’s personal life?

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19 comments

  1. Praiseworthy guidance.a comparison with the similar works of other poets like Kamala Das will be appreciated.

  2. Really inner beauty is greter than outer.no one is more beutiful in that sese from woman. She is wonderful in caring. The last line mentions her palm which is a blessing for serving for catering service which matters more not the raw physical beauty.marvellous.

  3. Great material, great summary and explanation of poem. Very detailed and organized. It helped me to research and answer some questions related to this poem. Thank you and hope more material will be added on different poems.

  4. Very nice summary and analysis, i have get much objectives from the explanation of this poem, i wish u all the best, thanks for ur contribution to us.

  5. It’s really very helpful .it has helped me clearing my boards.because this was the most toughest poem I’ve ever studied in my life.

  6. Really appreciative.. Inner beauty nd inner essence is the most important thing in one’s life.. Felt quite confident with myself after reading these beautiful poem..

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