Analysis of "Phenomenal Woman" by Maya Angelou

The poem Phenomenal Woman was written by Maya Angelou and published on 1995. Angelou was an American poet, singer, actress, composer and first black female Hollywood director. She published around thirty books. Maya became involved with the Civil Rights movement and worked with Martin Luther King. She also help improving conditions of African women. Maya Angelou died on May 28, 2015.

Phenomenal Woman is a poem that contain various tones. The tone of celebration and proud are outstanding throughout the whole poem. Maya is not celebrating that she is a woman, she is celebrating and she is also proud that she is a Phenomenal Woman. The poem also contain an encouraging tone because when women read it they feel happy and they feel that they are reading it for themselves. Confidence is also a tone of the poem because it tells that no one opinion matters if you know it is wrong, because you have confidence in yourself.

The poem contain various themes. The most protruding themes are self-confidence, and defining the self. Self-confidence is linked with self-esteem. In the poem, Maya have confidence on her, that’s why says she is a Phenomenal Woman. Maya uses the theme of defining the self because she knows that when people are define, other people look them with admiration.

Maya Angelou wrote this poem in form of speech, and she uses a language easy to understand. She makes lots of comparison and contrast, and metaphors to describe herself. Many of the lines rhyme, but they do not contain any rhyme scheme. The repetition of words starting with “f” in the poem is to create a sound similar to “ph” of phenomenal. The whole poem is written on a happy mood, and uses the word “phenomenal” as a hyperbole showing how powerful women are.

            Maya Angelou main purpose on Phenomenal Woman is to show women that they should be proud of them because they are phenomenal. Angelou also invite women to be confident, because confidence is what is going to make them succeed. She does that by communicating her personal experiences through the poem.  Maya Angelou is doing that because she want to show that she is a tough woman, and that other woman can be that tough. Phenomenal Woman express how proud a woman should be no matter what have happened.