‘Still I Rise’ by Maya Angelou
The poem, Still I Rise by Maya Angelou focuses on the idea of overcoming difficulty, and standing tall despite adversity and problems. The speaker in the poem presents various scenarios, for example:
“You may kill me with your hatefulness,
It is inspiring and reminds me of the idea that my mother used to tell me when I was younger: the age-old ‘sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.’
As a child, some of the other children at school were mean to me and would mock me for silly things – as children sometimes do. This poem really speaks to me and echoes my life because of how I had to overcome the ignorance of others around me in order to find happiness. But, I managed it – I rose above their words and actions, and became a confident, well-adjusted adult. I even managed to find some really good friends at school.
Everyone experiences some form of discrimination in their lifetime, whether it is directly aimed at them personally, or whether it is aimed at a section of society as a whole. Ignorance and judging is something which is rife throughout society, and I, perhaps more than most, have encountered plenty of it. One area of the poem particularly speaks to me in this sense:
“Does my sexiness upset you?
Does it come as a surprise
That I dance like I’ve got diamonds
At the meeting of my thighs?”
Angelou is clearly trying to discuss the idea that we are all individuals.
As a young person today, it is hard to be an individual when the media constantly rams images of what we are all ‘meant’ to look like, and define what is and isn’t attractive. I have found this to be a particularly difficult part of growing up, and I am only just beginning to discover that regardless of whether I ‘fit in’ or not, that I am found to be attractive by some people. I don’t need to be the perfect size, or wear the right clothes, or have my hair in the fashionable way, not when I am confident enough to be myself and that is what is truly attractive. I can dance like I’ve got diamonds, regardless of what other people think of me.
Upon reading this poem, it made me feel strong and like I could face the problems in my life. I love Angelou’s optimism and the ability to find the positives in every situation. Her idea of oil wells in her living room, and gold mines in her back yards, is one which I particularly relate to; we don’t all have financial riches but some of us are rich in friends, health, character, and love. I am the latter and I know that, if I had to choose, it would be the latter that I would pick. My experiences in life had tested me to my limits, at times, and this poem inspires me to be resilient and strong. To me, life can be challenging and Angelou is so powerfully tough that it is hard not to feel up to that. She laughs off the ignorance and belittling of others, and seems to transform their negative energy into positive, and that is something which I, personally, endeavour to do in my own life.
