homage to my hips
these hips are big hips
they need space to
move around in.
they don't fit into little
petty places. these hips
are free hips.
they don't like to be held back.
these hips have never been enslaved,
they go where they want to go
they do what they want to do.
these hips are mighty hips.
these hips are magic hips.
i have known them
to put a spell on a man and
spin him like a top!
Through this brief
poem one can see the acts of rebellion against society.In this poem, Lucille
Clifton rebels against what it means to be beautiful and a woman in society’s
standards. Clifton tells of her “big hips” and how they do not fit the current
standard of beauty present in society. In America, a woman is typically seen as
beautiful if she is thin and tall, and if she looks like a model. But Clifton
rebels against this notion and speaks for many women with her poem homage to my hips. Clifton defines her
own beauty and acknowledges how comfortable she is being who she is: “These
hips are free hips. they don’t like to be held back.” This is meant to boost
the confidence of several women who too do not exactly fit the profile of “beautiful.”
Furthermore, Clifton speaks on the issue of gender equality through her poem.
She first boosts women’s confidence and then empowers them. She tells them not
to fit the stereotype that women are beneath men. Her poem speaks to all women
and she notes “[our hips] don’t like to be held back.” This is restricted under
men and that women shouldn’t allow themselves to be because women have “mighty
hips” and “magic hips”, and are capable and strong, and are just as great, if
not better than men. Afterall, Clifton notes that her hips can put a “spell on
man and spin him like a top!” Showing that women are more influential and
powerful than they are displayed in society. And because of this women should
not conform to the their expected roles in the world because often times they
are much more.
Clifton, Lucille. "Homage to My Hips." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/179615
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