"Phenomenal Woman" is a poem by Maya Angelou, first published in 1978.
The poem rejects
narrow societal expectations of women and proposes an alternative perspective on what
defines real beauty. Confidence and comfort in one's own skin, the speaker insists, are the
markers of true beauty.
Phenomenal Woman
BY MAYA ANG E LOU
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms,
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them,
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing,
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need for my care.
’Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
“Phenomenal Woman” Summary
o The speaker refers to an elusive "secret" about herself that
conventionally attractive women struggle to understand. She explains that she doesn't
look like the models glorified by the fashion industry, and that when she stars to reveal
her secret these other women don't believe her. The speaker claims that her beauty is
manifested in her wide hips, her confident gait, and her smile. She's an extraordinary
woman. When you think of an extraordinary woman, that's the speaker.
Whenever the speaker calmly walks into a room, every single man present desperately
competes for her attention. These men are drawn to the speaker, buzzing around her
like honey bees. This is because her passion for life manifests in her physical
appearance—in her flashing eyes, her vibrant smile, the way her waist sways as she
walks, and the happy lightness in her step. She again declares that she's an
extraordinary woman. When you think of an extraordinary woman, that's the speaker.
Men have also asked themselves what it is about the speaker that makes her so
attractive. But no matter how hard they try to pin down the speaker's mysterious appeal,
they can't come close. Even when she tries to reveal her secret to these men, they just
don't get it. The speaker says that her beauty exists in the way she carries herself—in
her confident posture; her bright, sunny smile; the shape of her breasts; and her elegant
style. She's an extraordinary woman. When you think of an extraordinary woman, that's
the speaker.
This, the speaker says, is why she insists on moving throughout the world confidently
and boldly. She doesn't have to overcompensate in any way or prove herself to
anyone. In fact, when other women see the speaker, they should be inspired to be more
confident themselves. The speaker's appeal exists in the way she struts in heels, in the
way her hair falls, in the way she holds out her hands, in the way others want her to
care for them. She's an extraordinary woman. When you think of an extraordinary
woman, that's the speaker.
“Phenomenal Woman” Themes
o
Beauty and Self-Acceptance
“Phenomenal Woman” challenges restrictive notions of feminine beauty. The speaker
rejects narrow societal beauty standards, and insists instead that real beauty comes
from a place of self-confidence and self-acceptance.
The speaker opens the poem by referencing the “secret” to her appeal. She explains
that though she is “not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size,” she still possesses a
unique, mysterious allure. She calls this “her inner mystery”—something that no one
can precisely define or identify, but that everyone can perceive on some level.
On the one hand, the speaker explicitly rejects narrow physical ideals of feminine
beauty. For instance, she says her beauty lies in things like “the reach of my arms / The
span of my hips.” She's not a tiny, wispy fashion model, but that doesn't mean she's not
attractive.
Even more importantly, the speaker repeatedly insists that her beauty lies in the way
she carries herself—in her self-assured "stride," her bright smile, her grace, and her
bold posture. All these things make her a "phenomenal woman"—that is, an
extraordinary, spectacular woman. The speaker thus argues that true beauty stems
from loving yourself, rather than trying to meet a certain standard and then feeling bad
about yourself when you can't.
Indeed, the speaker declares that such self-acceptance is exactly what makes her so
irresistible. Whenever she enters a room, she says men “swarm around" her like a "hive
of honey bees," drawn to her passion for life and unconditional self-love. She describes
the “fire in [her] eyes” and the “joy in [her] feet” as being part of her allure, further
supporting the idea that her attractiveness comes from her refusal to feel let society fill
her with any sort of shame about who she is or what she looks like.
Whereas society may expect women to be meek, demure, and apologetic about their
supposed imperfections, the speaker refuses to belittle herself. As she says in the final
stanza, “Now you understand / Just why my head’s not bowed,” concluding that beauty
is born out of radical self-acceptance and the self-confidence that results from it.
What's more, she says that her example out to make her audience "proud." In other
words, other women should find inspiration in the speaker's confidence. Though the
poem never addresses race specifically, the fact that Angelou was a black woman
writing when societal standards of beauty were often inextricable from whiteness adds
another powerful angle to this message.
Ultimately, the poem says that instead of conforming to the standards set by society,
women should reconnect with their own value and find validation from within. All women
are capable of being “phenomenal,” the poem implies, if they embrace who they are
instead of trying to fit in with arbitrary social standards. In fact, the poem suggests that
accepting and loving yourself is, in itself, an extraordinary act within a society that
promotes insecurity and self-loathing in women. It is this step towards unconditional
self-love that makes a woman truly phenomenal
