Still I Rise (SQA National 5 English): Revision Note

Angelou implies that the speaker of the poem is a Black woman:

• It therefore presents the bold defiance of the speaker in the face of racism and oppression, both current and historical

The “oppressor” is referred to throughout the poem as “you” and is directly addressed:

• However, despite all of the methods the oppressor might use to destroy her in mind and body, she remains defiant

The primary message in the poem is that society continually tries to humiliate and destroy marginalised people:

• But the dignity the speaker shows in the face of these attempts speaks not only to Black women, but to all people facing oppression

• The message can be applied to anybody in a circumstance in which they refuse to be broken by prejudice and hatred

Living life to the fullest, with love, joy, pride and dignity is in itself an act of resistance against hatred and discrimination and the embodiment of triumph over oppression:

• This is a message that is still relevant today, as prejudice, discrimination and hatred against individuals or groups in society still exists

• The poem expresses hope that one day these things can be overcome

• Angelou therefore speaks not only for herself, but for her entire race and gender, and for anyone facing similar oppression

The speaker in this poem can be seen as symbolic of the Black community as a whole, but also as a celebration of Black womanhood’s power and beauty:

• The poem implies that Black women’s bodies and lives are perceived as less worthy than others

The speaker compares herself to symbols of wealth and value, such as gold mines and diamonds:

• The speaker therefore assigns high value to her body and gives it power and beauty, regardless of what society dictates

• Her strength comes from her identity as a woman of colour

The poem’s title is an emphatic declaration against the oppressors who try to dominate and suppress the speaker:

• The speaker in this poem represents the Black community as a whole

Angelou deliberately changes the stanza length as the poem progresses:

• The poem therefore subverts the reader’s expectations of form just like her speaker subverts her oppressor’s expectations

• She further subverts expectations with shifts in rhyme scheme

The poem can also be considered an ode to oppressed Black womanhood:

• The speaker celebrates Black women in mind, body and soul

Angelou uses symbols of wealth and things desired by society to indicate the inherent worth and value of her speaker:

• She references her speaker’s sexuality to assert that her speaker is just as capable of being loved and desired as anyone else

The poet also refers to the ocean as a symbol of a powerful force of nature:

• It therefore represents the speaker’s power as a force of its own which cannot be controlled by others, just as the ocean cannot be controlled by humanity

Metaphor is used to express the things the oppressor may do to harm the speaker:

• For example: “You may shoot me with your words”

• The use of “shoot”, “cut” and “kill” reinforce the pain caused by racism and prejudice

The guilty and shameful memory of slavery is also alluded to in the metaphor “the huts of history’s shame”:

• Again, the speaker will rise out of these “huts of history’s shame”

The speaker asks a series of rhetorical questions to make a point:

• She does not expect the oppressor to answer

• Instead, she answers with a challenge to society’s expectations

• This technique also serves to acknowledge those expectations while simultaneously rejecting them

The repetition of “Still I rise” emphasises its importance at the heart of the poem:

• It becomes a defiant refrain that underscores the speaker’s strength and resilience

• The triple repetition of this phrase at the end of the poem turns the message of defiance from an individual one to a collective one

The repetition of similar wording or phrasing establishes the coordination of key ideas and brings a sense of order to the poem:

• For example: “Just like moon and like suns,/With the certainty of tides,/Just like hopes springing high,/Still I’ll rise.”

• The order given to the ideas gives the speaker reliability and the listener confidence that she has the resilience to rise above oppression

The image of “dust” rising from the earth could be considered a Biblical reference, as out of “dust” humans were made and to dust our bodies return when we die

The speaker’s physical, mental and spiritual power are also conveyed by her comparison to “oil wells” and the fact that she dances like she’s “got diamonds/At the meeting of my thighs?”