1. POEM ANALYZING
“Still I Rise”
“Still I Rise”
Deborah Lee
8E
2. Still I Rise
by.
MAYA ANGELOU
Still I Rise
You m write m
ay e
down in history
With your bitter, twisted
lies,
You m trod m in the
ay e
very dirt
But still, like dust, I 'll rise.
Does m sassiness upset
y
you?
Why are you beset with
gloom ?
'Cause I walk like I 've got
oil wells
Pum ping in m living room
y .
J ust like m oons and like
suns,
With the certainty of tides,
J ust like hopes springing
high,
Still I 'll rise.
Did you want to see m e
broken?
Bowed head and lowered
eyes?
Shoulders falling down like
3. Who wrote it?
She is black woman with 80 years of life spent.
•
Other than being a poet, she was also a playwright, actor, and
author.
She has have been active in participating Social Rights Movement.
•
Her great grandmother, Mary Lee, was a slave and was physically and
•
mentally harassed by her slave owner.
Harsh early life with raping, death, and separation.
At the age of 16, introduced to the world of literature.
•
4. Setting?
WHO: The blacks whose ancestors used to
•
be slaves
WHERE: America (U.S)
WHEN: 1960’s
•
WHAT: Possess pride, confidence, and hope
for the blacks and their rights
8. You may write me down in history
Example#1twisted lies,
With your bitter,
You may trod me in the very dirt
★Throughout the poem, the poet
But still, like dust, I'll rise.
continues to use “still...I’ll
rise.”
★This is a repetition because it
Just like moons and like suns,
is using the same phrase over
With the certainty of tides, and over.
★This tells us that no matter
Just like hopes springing high,
what happens, “I” will always
rise.
Still I'll rise.
★Emphasize how much hope and
confidence she has despite the
hardships
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your
9. Example#2
“
★ Throughout the poem, the
Out of the huts of history's shame
poet repeats the word, “I
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain rise”
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
★ This is a repetition because it
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
is using the same phrase over
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
and over.
I rise
Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise
★ This repetition is emphasizing
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
“I rise”, therefore, giving the
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
reader the importance of
I rise
I rise standing up again and trying
I rise. over and over.
”
10. Rhyme
Usually placed in the end of each line
correspondence of sound between words or the
ending part of words
gives the reader clues of the meaning of the poem
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11. With your bitter, twisted lies,
Example#1
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.
★If read carefully, you can easily
find whether it is a rhyme or not.
Does my sassiness upset you?
ex) lies&rise
Why are you beset with gloom?
gloom&room
tides&rise
'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells eyes&cries
hard&yard
Pumping in my living room. eyes&rise
Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
12. Symbolism
An object or an action that stands more than
itself, representing something beyond
Pi
Peace
13. Example#1
“
Out of the huts of history's
shame
I rise
★“I rise”
Up from a past that's
rooted in pain
★Rise originally means to move upward
I rise
or to stand up.
I'm a black ocean, leaping
and wide,
★In the text, this word shows that no
Welling and swelling I bear
in the tide. matter how down you might feel, you
Leaving behind nights of can always stand up again and get
terror and fear back on the road.
I rise
”
14. Example #2
“
★ “I’ve got oil wells pumping in
Does my sassiness upset
my living room”
you?
Why are you beset with
gloom? Oil wells are very valuable ->
'Cause I walk like I've got rich
oil wells
Pumping in my living room Represents confidence the poet
has in herself
”
15. Imagery
Visually descriptive about a scene
•
Purpose: create vivid image of descriptions
•
“All the sun long it was running, it was
lovely, the hay
Fields high as the house, the tunes from
the chimneys, it was air
And playing, lovely and watery
And fire green as grass.
And nightly under the simple stars”
Fern Hill, Dylon Thomas
16. Example#1
“
★ “I’ve got oil wells pumping in
Does my sassiness upset
my living room”
you?
Why are you beset with
gloom? Oil wells are very valuable ->
'Cause I walk like I've got rich
oil wells
Pumping in my living room Represents confidence the poet
has in herself
”
17. Hyperbole
exaggerated statements or claims
•
not meant to be taken literally
used for emphasizing
•
18. Example #1
“ ★ The poet mentioned shooting,
cutting, and killing and related
You may shoot me with your to words , eyes, and
words, hatefulness.
You may cut me with your
eyes,
★ Used these powerful words to
You may kill me with your
describe how brutal “you” were
hatefulness,
treating “me” and how “I” still
But still, like air, I'll rise.
endure it.
”
★ emphasize the brutal treatment
19. Metaphor
A word or a phrase that is applied to an
•
object or an action using “is”
Directly compares two objects that seems
•
unrelated
is
A B
20. Example#1
“ ★ The poet is comparing “me”
and “black ocean”
I'm a black ocean,
leaping and wide,
★ Just like how the black ocean
Welling and swelling I is full of fear and terror, “I”
spent her life enduring all the
bear in the tide.
rough times.
”
22. Example#1
“
Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
★ The following five .
.
questions shows the poet’s
.
agony towards “you”.
.
Did you want to see me broken?
★ It sounds like the poet is .
asking if “you” are .
jealous of her or not. .
.
Does my haughtiness offend you?
★ The question adds more ;
emotions in each stanza. .
It adds more effect. .
Does my sexiness upset you?
”
23. What’s the message?
Although the author is living in a tough age
•
for black women, she is able to endure them
by her great confidence and hope.
From her poem, we can learn that no matter
what situation you are in, there’s always
hope.
24. Bibliography
Dan F. Umanoff, M.D. quot;Still I Risequot;. Hypoism. 1.15.08 <http://www.hypoism.com/35maryangelousstillirise/
>.
quot;Poetry Projectquot;. Twinfield. 1.13.08 <
•
http://209.85.173.132/search?q=cache:fStpmkKPMz8J:www.twinfield.net/teachers/fowler/classroom/resources/poetry_p
>.
quot;Top500 Poems quot;. PoemHunter. 1/15/2009 7:16:20 AM <http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/still-i-rise/>.
•
quot;Maya Angelou.quot; Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 11 Jan 2009, 21:31 UTC. 15 Jan 2009 <
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Maya_Angelou&oldid=263453172>.
valerie fishman. quot;Still I Risequot;. valerie's uh300 blog. 1.15.08 <
•
http://valerieuh300.blogspot.com/2008/10/analyzing-still-i-rise.html>.
