Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.

You announce my ways are wanton,
that I fly from man to man,
but if I'm just a shadow to you,
could you ever understand ?

We have lived a painful history,
we know the shameful past,
but I keep on marching forward,
and you keep on coming last.

Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.

Take the blinders from your vision,
take the padding from your ears,
and confess you've heard me crying,
and admit you've seen my tears.

Hear the tempo so compelling,
hear the blood throb in my veins.
Yes, my drums are beating nightly,
and the rhythms never change.

Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.

I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size   

But when I start to tell them, 

They think I’m telling lies. 

I say, 

It’s in the reach of my arms, 

The span of my hips,   

The stride of my step,   

The curl of my lips.   

I’m a woman 

Phenomenally. 

Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me. 

I walk into a room 

Just as cool as you please,   

And to a man, 

The fellows stand or 

Fall down on their knees.   

Then they swarm around me, 

A hive of honey bees.   

I say, 

It’s the fire in my eyes,   

And the flash of my teeth,   

The swing in my waist,   

And the joy in my feet.   

I’m a woman 

Phenomenally. 
Phenomenal woman, 

That’s me. 

Men themselves have wondered   

What they see in me. 

They try so much 

But they can’t touch 

My inner mystery. 

When I try to show them,   

They say they still can’t see.   

I say, 

It’s in the arch of my back,   

The sun of my smile, 

The ride of my breasts, 

The grace of my style. 

I’m a woman 

Phenomenally. 

Phenomenal woman, 

That’s me. 

Now you understand 

Just why my head’s not bowed.   

I don’t shout or jump about 

Or have to talk real loud.   

When you see me passing, 

It ought to make you proud. 

I say, 

It’s in the click of my heels,   

The bend of my hair,   

the palm of my hand,   

The need for my care.   

’Cause I’m a woman 

Phenomenally. 

Phenomenal woman, 

That's me.

Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me." (Angelou, lines 10 - 12). The poem's meaning is to explain the opinions of others and Angelou's opinions on her life as a powerful, yet not physically flawless women. It begins by stating female stereotypes of beauty. "I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size." (Angelou, line 2). She states that she is not physically attractive. Then it continues to explain, that men come rushing to her, but they don't understand why they do. She states, that the men actually don't understand her either, but she doesn't fins this as a downfall. She feels that she is phenomenal because her beauty is her confidence and uniqueness.  Angelou wrote this poem, because she was a civil rights activist. This poem like Dr. Martin Luther King's speeches, with whom she worked closely with, was written to inspire people to take initiative in times of hardship.



 

2. Parallelism - the repetition of a grammatical pattern to express ideas that are related or equal in importance. "The span of my hips,   

The stride of my step,   

The curl of my lips." (Angelou, lines 7-9). The author repeats the word "the" at the beginning of the sentence and then the words "of my" in the middle of the sentence. This repetition of grammatical patterns shows that all of the actions and physical looks that make her a unique women are of equal importance.

3. Refrain - a regularly repeated line or group of lines in a poem. "Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free." (Angelou, lines 9-10). Angelou is repeats this group of lines three times throughout the poem. These words explain that she will feel free once there is equality. Without equality, there will always be burdens holding her back from freedom.
4. Imagery - descriptive language used in literature to recreate sensory experiences relating to the five sense. "It’s in the click of my heels"(Angelou, line 53). The author explains that the click of her heels presents authority. This is an example of imagery, because it explains the "click of her heels" which relates to a persons hearing. The image of a well presented women of authority is created as she stands tall in her high heels.
5. Idiom - an expression having a special meaning not clear from the usual meaning of the words in the expression. "It’s the fire in my eyes" (Angelou, line 22). The expression does not mean that her eyes are literally on fire. Instead, it is explaining the passion which consumes here can be seen when she looks at a person.
6. Rhyme - the sounds of the accented vowels and all succeeding sounds are identical. "I don’t shout or jump about" (Angelou, line 48). The author rhymes the words "shout" and "about". This creates a connection between the two events, in which she does not need to shout or jump around in order to receive attention. 

"Maya Angelou." Best Poems. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2017.

"Maya Angelou." Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 05 Aug. 2016. Web. 02 Apr. 2017.

"Remembering and Celebrating the Life of Dr. Maya Angelou." National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2017.