Lucille Clifton

African-American writers, Maya Angelou and Lucille Clifton, use their words to express their individuality and the impact of oppression on the lives of blacks. These widely respected poets accentuate strength and persistence through adversity, with a sense of morality. They also touch on the influences of segregation and women’s suffering and inequality. In spite of these, every word read by the reader is analyzed and criticized. Even with such few words, the poems, “won’t you celebrate with me” and “Still I Rise” give us the opportunity to raise concerns on self-confidence and perseverance during times of injustice. Maya Angelou’s “Still I Rise” focuses on overcoming racial injustice, declaring that she will rise above history that has degraded,…

which are clearly indicated and acknowledged as such. I have not committed plagiarism when completing this work, nor have I collaborated with other student in the preparation of this work. Chintan Jani Professor Amanda Meyer English 102-05 21 September 2016 Hips Don’t Lie When issues like body-shaming are hindering many from being happy with who they are, Jes Baker in Things ‘No One Will Tell Fat Girls’ says “The second you stop looking for someone else in the mirror and start looking at you is…

In Lucille Clifton’s “good times”, the speaker reflects on the poverty in her childhood and creates feelings of sympathy and appreciation for the simple pleasures in life. Despite the speaker’s situation, she still finds the good in life. The literary device of repetition is used in the poem to convey the theme of always to focus on the good rather than the bad and to emphasize that although there is poverty in the speaker’s life, she still remains positive. Repetition, or a refrain, is seen…

Moonchild is a poem about the sexual abuse Lucille Clifton endured as a child. As the moon represents her mom as she would recognize the abuse and try to help Lucille cope with it, but never do anything to stop the abuse. You can see the clear signs of her trying to express her abuse that her father created for her. “jay johnson is teaching / me to french kiss, ella bragged, who / is teaching you? how do you say; my father?”(Moonchild 13-15). When she was only ten years old her father had…

Many times, two poems can be very closely related, yet still be so different. When a poet uses elements such as figurative language and word choice in a poem, it creates a new experience for the reader. Even when two poems have the same topic and theme or message, they still come out with different points of view or tone of voice. The poems “What The Mirror Said” by Lucille Clifton, and “Mirrors” by KHL show how people view their bodies using the content, the craft, and the similarities and…

The poem “forgiving my father”, written in 1969 by Lucille Clifton, is a poem that shows the harsh reality of a daughter who has lost her mother and lives with the debt of her father haunting her. Some might question if both parents are deceased but I believe only her mother is dead, “My mother’s hand opens in her early grave” (Clifton, 6), shows that her mother has passed away early. The speaker in the poem, the daughter of the two parents, displays her emotional detachment from her father.…

The poem “For De Lawd”, written by Lucille Clifton, is a fantastic work of literature. It shows the strife of a woman who must overcome obstacles. The poem shows the strength of a hard working woman. She has witnessed death and trying times in the inner city. However, she perceivers through the hard times and lives her life. The woman is strong, proud, and happy; all these qualities that she has are ones that I do not and wish that I did have. There are people who would disagree and say that I…

power. As female poets, Jan Beatty, Lucille Clifton, and Marge Piercy challenge the assumption that women are the weaker sex. In their respective works, each poet identifies a mechanism for women to gain power both in society as well as over men. In “Waitress’ Instruction on Tipping or Get the Cash up and Don’t Waste My Time,” Jan Beatty demonstrates that a woman’s power comes from her character. At first, the poem seems to be materialistic and money seeking. The speaker is giving…

“Under The Lemon Tree”, by Marsha De Lao, and “Forgiving My Father”, by Lucille Clifton are two extremely melancholy poems that speak of the despondency of two daughters. “Under the Lemon Tree” features a daughter in a great deal of pain over the loss of her mother 6 years earlier. The daughter suggest that her mother had left this world too soon, with a lot more life ahead of her. “Forgiving My Father” by Lucille Clifton demonstrates a slightly different viewpoint of a similar situation. This…

The Essays “Salvation” by Langston Hughes and “The Lottery” by Chris Abani maintain correlations regarding main ideas. In “Salvation,” Hughes retains the belief that a community enacts pressure onto its youths to comply with its customs in order to maintain orthodoxy in its society. Hughes shares his personal experience at a revival where twelve year old Hughes was pressured by his congregation to be “brought to Jesus.” Similar to Hughes, in “The Lottery,” Abani asserts that society is forcibly…