Woman Work
By: Maya Angelou
Page 271
Maya Angelou starts off the poem with the repetition of an idea. Starting off with the word the, she then follows it with a spit fire of all the chores she must accomplish. Such as, “The floor to mop The food to shop the chicken to fry The baby to dry” a feel of rushed over whelming is felt adding to the effect of the poem. The struggle of this women is felt as she uses repetition to show how much she must actually get done in a day. Simply reading all her chores is enough to exhaust the reader. Also, the repetition of the use of natural elements add to this the tale of this poem. IT allows the reader to get to know the woman as connected to nature while giving us a strong sense of the wide open out doors. She speaks of “Sun, rain, curving sky Mountain, oceans, lead and stone” Her repetition of these outdoor scenarios come into great effect because out of all the things she may mention she mentions the freest, broadest places such as the ocean and mountains. She mentions areas where one can get lost; giving us an insight into her conscience.
The next literary device is personification. “ Shine on me, sunshine” Angelou speaks to the elements of weather. With this line she shows the strength of woman taking on all that is thrown whether it be the pleasant feel of the sunshine to the miserable rain. Adding to the poems intent to empower the woman. Personification is next used when she speaks to the storm, “ Storm, blow me from here with your fiercest wind Let me float across the sky “Til I can rest again” These words indirectly make us aware of how exhausted this woman is. She speaks to the storm of just allowing her to float peacefully; get away from all the hard work.
This poem shows the struggle of a woman who does not have a lot. It shows the struggle of having so much to take care of; and the struggle to maintain a home. Her lines such as “ Star shine, moon glow you’re al that I can call my own” show that she is a struggler. She doesn’t have all the riches and nice things so she must resort to the nature surrounding her. This poem allows us to feel the amount of pressure and stress that is never recognized. Although she isn’t off doing things such as hunting for food and all, the simple tasks when piled on is draining. The poem allows us into the mind of a dreamer and the outlet nature provides.
This is amazing :)
ReplyDeleteHey Hana, I'm Hannah ;) haha, really. I'm doing this analysis and just wanted to tell you it is not imagery that is used in the last couple of stanzas, although i thought the same. It is actually a literary devise called apostrophe, in which the speaker is addressing nature. Although often used with an "OH" at the beginning of a phrase, (example: "Oh, tree, how tall thou stands... etc) this is indeed a form of apostrophe :)
ReplyDeleteI thought when she said " shine on me sunshine and rain on me rain" she was referring to her inner desire for nature to cure of fatigue. This poem, I think, centers around fatigue and faint remorse about the monotonous lives of women and how only nature can lift them from their depressed spirits.
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