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User Rating: |
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8.5
/10
(1583
votes)
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Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
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 of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Maya Angelou
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Read poems about / on: woman, women, hair, smile, fire, joy, sun
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Comments about this poem (Phenomenal Woman
by
Maya Angelou
) |
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comments about this poem (Phenomenal Woman by
Maya Angelou
)
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Ahtivah Lawton
(7/3/2009 5:40:00 PM) |
This poem will stay a classic..and is phenomenal!
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Sarun V.s
(7/3/2009 8:13:00 AM) |
i'l never cry for jolie's lips..
i'l never cry for shakira's hips..
i'l never cry for heaven..
i stick to my earth..
i enjoy myself..
i feel i am the best...
and therefor i exist..
i am maya..PHENOMENAL WOMEN..
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Nicole Mullins
(7/1/2009 10:19:00 PM) |
i have the most respect for this woman because she carries so much confidence and self respect. she embodies who i want to be and when i read her poems i feel important and it gives me confidence in myself that never had. i would be honored to meet her and tell her that in person.
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Michelle Hill
(7/1/2009 11:07:00 AM) |
You have just proven my point. We have become such a negative society that we don't see the beauty in simpleness. This poem reflects and celebrates women. It also celebrates the features of African-American women (and women as a whole) that have not been appreciated by society. This also is reflects the rhythm and phrasing that is African-American poetry and our everyday conversation. So what if it doesn't follow exact form. It doesn't have to be a sonnet to be beautiful. It doesn't have to have deep symbolism to be beautiful. And what is wrong with using poetry to encourage and inspire better self-esteem? Isn't that the point? I am an African-American woman and truly appreciate Dr. Angelou. Each time my friends hear this poem we cheer because of what is says and what it means. I was looking for this poem to use to celebrate a special African-American woman in my life. All I am saying is to take a chance a not look at this poem from a merely academic or psychotherapist point of view. Look at all the phenominal women in your life. See their greatness and what they have brought into your life. I don't think that Dr. Angelou wrote this for herself, she wrote this as a voice for those who don't the means to express. And when you do that, sometimes you have to write it in the way that the voiceless would write it. Which could explain the poem's simplistic form. Thank you Dr. Angelou. Here's to Phenominal Women.
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Raymond Dotterer
(6/30/2009 10:15:00 PM) |
If Angelou is a story teller here, then she's relating a trite tale. I'm sure hundreds of psychologists have seen similar poems written by those undergoing self esteem therapy.
And that's what makes this poem such a bad poem. It isn't only the uninspired word choice. It isn't just mediocre phrasing. It's that the poem sounds like it was written by a weak soul that's trying to convince herself that she's something special. She may have convinced herself, but she doesn't convince me. The poem is self-motivational scribble that might have been written by a teenage girl in her diary after a bad break-up.
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Michelle Hill
(6/30/2009 6:27:00 PM) |
I am shocked and saddened by the negative and ignorant comments in response to this poem, Dr. Maya Angelou's work and toward women. Dr. Angelou's does not have to write like Yeats, Kipling, Dickenson or any either poet. She is one of the greatest poets of our time and a wonderful story teller. Poetry is not just about form. It is about expression and telling a story. This story is about a Phenomenal Women who doesn't need to be egostistical to express her phenomenalness. And why can't a women or any person, for that matter, be confident without being considered egotistical. I really hope that those of you who took the time to write a negative comment can take the time to appreciate Dr. Angelou's work and all the Phenomenal Women this world has to offer.
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Raymond Dotterer
(6/30/2009 11:04:00 AM) |
Any broad survey of poetry would judge this poem as only just good. There are many superior poems available on this site. If you find yourself praising this poem as excellent, I hope you'll look deeper into the collection of poems here. There are a number of peoms by Yeats, for example, that are excellent.
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Hatemnicagh Hawkin
(6/30/2009 9:11:00 AM) |
oh god i'm so sexy.
Go get a life Gina, how can a stupid poem give you confidence? !
And you Crystle shut up with your ten thumbs up. you can't even spell THUMBS!
retards.
your all losers
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Kafil Uddin Raihan
(6/22/2009 1:53:00 AM) |
cause I am a woman
phenomenally.........really excellent poem.
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