The Importance of ‘Phenomenal Woman’ to Angelou's Collection of Poems Summer Jade Dolan 12th Grade

‘Phenomenal woman’, being semiotic of a woman’s stability and security in herself is particularly important in Angelou’s collection given that the one of the recurring themes projected consistently throughout her poems is the idea of confidence, and subsequently confidence in one’s self; being yourself and respecting yourself regardless of the opinions of others in reaction and relation to this, and the hardships you may face as a result. In the name of the collection itself, taken from what evidently Angelou considers to be the most centrally important poem as the poet, (though this is in no way an indication of the readers’ viewing of the most centrally important poem), ‘And Still I Rise’ has many connotations of an inability to give up, not only with metaphorically continuing to thrive despite the injustices that she has suffered, but perhaps even a spiritual element is present, with the idea of ‘rising’ linking in to the idea of the afterlife/ heaven; is this continuance not the most crucial? Is death not the biggest barrier we will all face? In the same sense, Phenomenal Woman mirrors similar ideas.

As both a woman and an African American in what was a racist and sexist period of the past, Angelou thoroughly and sincerely...