Phenomenal Woman

“Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou (1978)

The title poem of the collection in which “Phenomenal Woman” appears harbors many of the same themes. However, while “Phenomenal Woman” celebrates differences, “Still I Rise” addresses the difficulties of disparagement, and promotes the courage necessary to defeat it. The speaker hopes that by “[b]ringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, / I am the dream and the hope of the slave” (Lines 39-40). Here, the speaker admonishes those who may feel that a Black woman had no right to speak with “sass” (Line 5). In both poems, Angelou’s speaker privileges self-esteem over others’ judgments.

“Kin” by Maya Angelou (1978)

In this poem from And Still I Rise, Angelou discusses her complex feelings of love and abandonment for her brother Bailey, to whom the poem is dedicated. While she regrets Bailey’s self-destructive belief that “[i]n destruction lies the seed of birth” (Lines 16), she does acknowledge that transformation might be imperative to Bailey regaining his dignity. This difficult process also allows for a return to innocence and a time before Bailey felt weighted down. Like “Phenomenal Woman,” the poem upholds valuing the self; only through this can there again be a celebratory return of “fireflies / Bursting tiny explosions in / An Arkansas twilight” (Lines 27-29).