Woman Work By Maya Angelou Reference Context Explanation for BA BSc English Notes Summary

 

Maya Angelou:

American born in St. Louis, 4 April 1928. Educated st schools in Arkansas and California.
Maya Angelou was an American poet, memoirist, and civil rights, activist, and award-winning author. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees.

Summary:

Maya Angelou, the poetess, has described the domestic routine of a housewife. The routine is mechanical, i.e. caring for the children, mending clothes, mapping floor, buying and cooking food and pressing clothes etc. It is in fact drudgery. No leisure is available to a woman. Even then she is dreaming of ideal life. She longs for rain, sunshine and snowfall. It gives woman strength to sustenance. She wishes to be one with nature and loves to be a part of the mountain, oceans, leaf and stone, star shine, moon glow. She likes to participate in nature around her. She is tired of her daily mechanical routine and requests the storm to rescue her as follows

Reference:

  These lines have been taken from the poem “Woman Work” written by Maya Angelou.

Context: 

This poem presents the miserable state of a working woman and her wish to live an ideal life. The poetess has shown different phases of her daily life. Basically, it is the poetess's desire to escape from the dull routine of life and having the company of nature It is an indirect praise of the woman's greatness. In general, the poem is an escape from the drudgery of the mechanical routine and taking shelter in an ideal life.

Stanza

I've got the children to tend

The clothes to mend

The floor or mop

The food to shop

Explanation:

In these lines, the poetess gives vent to her feelings for her dull and busy life. She is tired of the routine work of a working woman. She says she has to look after children at home. Also, she has to repair the clothes of the members of her family. She has to clean the floor of her house and has to collect edibles from the shop for her family. After that, she has to cook those things which she has brought from the shop.

Stanza

Then chicken to fry

The baby to dry

I got company to feed

The garden to weed

I've got the shirts to press

The tots to dress

The cane to be cut

I got to clean up this hut.

Explanation:

These lines are a continuation of her domestic chores. She has mentioned some of the chores in the previous stanza and of some talks here. She says that she has to cook chicken for the family. Also she has to dry the baby after bathing it. After that she has to prepare meal for her guests. She has to remove unwanted plants from her garden. She has to press the clothes of her children and other members of her family. She has to dress her little children and also has to cut bamboos. She has to clean the whole house. All these chores are quite tough and require courage and forbearance on the part of a domestic woman.

Stanza

Shine on me, sunshine

Rain on me, rain

Fall softly, dewdrops

And cool my brow again.

Explanation:

In these lines, the poetess wants to enjoy the natural objects. She has got tired of domestic work and wants to go close to nature. She says that the sunlight should shine on her, rain should fall on her. The dewdrops should gently fall upon her. All these things can cool her brow. All these natural objects can give her satisfaction and peace.

Stanza

Storm, blow me from here

With your fiercest wind

Let me float across the sky

Till I can rest again.

Explanation:

These lines are an expression of her escapism from the busy life of a working woman. The domestic woman remains awfully busy and dreams of an ideal life. In these lines, she asks the storm to blow her from the busy world across the sky with its stormy wind. As such she will be able to get relief from the hurly-burly of life. She asks the storm to take her to an imaginary world for rest. Only imagination can give her, peace, solace, and satisfaction, otherwise, physically it is not possible to run away from this world. Shelley in “Ode to the West Wind” says, oh, lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud! I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!

Stanza

Fall gently, snow flakes

Cover me with white

Cold icy kisses and 

Let me rest tonight.

Explanation:

This stanza is also an expression of taking relief and refuge with natural objects. She asks the snow-flakes to fall gently on her body and completely cover it up and make it all white. When she will be completely under the charm and burden of the white snow, she will get solace. She further asks snow to touch and give her cold icy kisses, so that she may be able to have rest that night. Actually, natural objects can please a person and give the company for some time.

Stanza

Sun rain, curving sky

Mountain, oceans, leaf and stone

Star shine, moon glow

You're all that I can call my own.

Explanation:

In these lines, the poetess addresses all the natural objects to help her in giving relief from the busy life of a working woman. She wants to lose herself among the natural objects. That is why she asks the sun, rain, the curving sky, the mountains, the ocean, the leaf, and the stone to give her relief. Actually, she wants to get relief and joy from all these things and wants to run away from dark and dull life at home. That is why she asks the moon to glow, the shining stars to give her shelter with them. She calls all these things her own because she wants some leisure and satisfaction in these natural things. Nature can give delight to her and can transport her to peace and tranquility.