homage to my hips Analysis

Welcome to the land of symbols, imagery, and wordplay. Before you travel any further, please know that there may be some thorny academic terminology ahead. Never fear, Shmoop is here. Check out our...

Free!None of that counting syllables or beating out rhythms against your desk. Nope. See, Lucille Clifton's language is straight shooting. She's going to express exactly what her speaker thinks and...

This is the woman that all women dream of becoming. She's confident, articulate, and honest with herself. She knows that there are all sorts of labels that people would like to attach to her –...

Remember that America Ferrera movie, Real Women Have Curves? There's a fabulous scene at the end of the movie when all of the women in a sweatshop strip down to their bras and flaunt their curves....

Just imagine Aretha Franklin belting out "Respect" in the background as this poem is read aloud. Like Aretha, this poem sounds brassy, strong, and tough – and it's oh-so-confident in its own...

Poetry is chock-full of odes and homages and songs of praise to just about object under the sun. There's "Ode to a Grecian Urn," for starters. Oh, and "Ode to a Nightingale." And let's not forget t...

Girl PowerRemember all of those positive self-esteem workshops that your elementary school guidance counselors had to make girls feel strong and powerful and comfortable in their own skins? Clifton...

(1) Sea LevelA feel-good message conveyed in short, simple language? Where do we sign up?

There are all sorts of organizations out there whose mission statements read something like a summary of this poem. Everybody's body is great. Are you short? Tall? A size 4? A size 14? Lucky you. Y...

PGWe don't get any specific references to sex, but don't let that fool you. These are some sexy, sexy hips. When they "spin" a man "like a top," we imagine that some good loving is not too far down...