Mothers

In the poem “Mothers" the speaker talks about her unchanging relationship with her mother.  She incorporates her mother’s struggle although it isn’t vaguely shown. The tone/attitude of this poem is very gloomy and sad.  This poem was basically a flashback of her mother and things she experienced. There were a lot of personal examples and occurrences that were revealed. The speaker uses words like ‘dark’ and ‘night’ to describe the atmosphere. I believe the thematic statement in this poem would be “You have to experience pain before you endure the pleasure”. The common motif in this poem would be remembrance. The word ‘remember was very prevalent throughout the poem. This shows the importance of remembering things and reflecting on the importance of them.  Nikki Giovanni also includes her present life in the end of her poem. She teaches her son something her mother taught her when she was kid. However , the reader could assume that this poem had some significance along with it. Her son learned the poem and recited it to her mother, to convey a message. The message that she was taught was now being passed down to her son. The importance of this poem was to inform as well as highlight the result of struggles and they are set in stone to tell a story.

Ego Tripping

In the poem “Ego Tripping” Nikki Giovanni’s personality was greatly shown.  The title of this poem definitely explains the importance of this poem. In each stanza she would compare herself to people who held a large amount of power.  This incorporates how she would be considered “Tripping”, based upon the confidence she held in this poem. There was a lot of imagery present in this poem because she explains every detail of her examples.  However there was one example that stood out the most to me. “In the poem Nikki Giovanni says “My son Noah built new/ark and I stood proudly at the helm”. This line shows her idea of being God.  This was very unusual give that God is very powerful and could never be copied. This shows the speakers large ego, when she compares herself to people who could never be replaced. The structure of this poem is the total opposite from the previous poems. They show a sense of confidence and knowledge and uses capital letters throughout the whole poem. This could reflect the speaker’s mood, while she was writing this poem. The tone/attitude of this poem would a condescending, the act of feeling superior. When it comes to having a big EGO, we tend to believe we should uphold a superior attitude that doesn’t really reflect who we truly are.

Kidnap Poem

In the poem “Kidnap poem”, I could tell it was spoken from the heart. The word ‘kidnap’ gave away the idea of this poem. To be captured by the author and her words was the goal of the speaker, which reflected the title. There were a lot of words that were used to show the image of relaxation. Words like ‘island’ and ‘beach’ gave off the idea of relaxing. The speaker wanted the reader to understand her thoughts and feelings on things when she writes poetry. The structure of this poem doesn’t explain her mood or what’s going on. However, it is similar to the previous poem where she doesn’t use capitals letters and make the poem all in one stanza. Although we’ve only read two poems from this particular book, I am starting to assume that the lower case letters through out the poem symbolize something Nikki Giovanni was experiencing. Towards the end she says “anything to win you wrap you in the red Black green”. I noticed that the color black stood out from the other two colors that were mentioned. The B is capitalizing unlike the other letters. In my opinion this could mean something, but it’s hard analyze what exactly she means. One can assume that the color black was something she value, which could possibly relate back the African American Society.

 

No Reservations

In the poem “No Reservations” the author wasn’t clear as to who the speaker could be. However, she used “I” once throughout the entire poem, and the reader could possibly assume that Nikki Giovanni is the speaker. The important motif in this poem would be the rules of war. She uses words like ‘revolution’, ‘battlefield’, ‘fire , ‘run’ and ‘shoot’ to feed off the main idea of the poem. Reservation is the act of reserving; keeping back or withholding. The tile of the poem is “No Reservation” and this could mean no holding back or reserving for war or rebellion. Nikki Giovanni begins the poem off with “ there are no reservations for the revolution” , which means there is no reserving for this rebellion .The structure of this poem is a little unusual , however I’ve read a poem by Nikki Giovanni with a similar structure. Previously, I assumed that if a poem is written only in lower case letters she’s writing the poem in a sense of urgency.  Capitalizing the letter “I” is obvious, but she keeps it lower case in this poem. The tone/attitude of this poem appears to give off a fed up or tired attitude. It seems as if the speaker is tired of watching individuals not being proactive within the revolution, because they aren’t given any motivation/signs to encourage them to fight back. Nikki Giovanni ends the poem off by saying “there will be reservations only if we fail”. This line explains how if the African American community fails at their rebellion they would be forced to holdback and wouldn’t have the ability to modify their rights within society.

 

Records

“Records”

In the poem “Records” the speaker is Nikki Giovanni because she speaks from first person point of view. She uses the letter “I” a lot in this poem , which can also show that she was the speaker of this poem. The idea of the poem was created too remember and record specific events during Nikki Giovanni’s lifetime. However, the structure of the poem also conveys a message without using words. Given that, the Poem was written in one stanza one can assume that this poem is written in a since of urgency and while trying to remember important events. Unlike the other poems Nikki Giovanni doesn’t use capital letters. It seems as if she was just trying to get the writing of the poem over with.  This poem seems to highlight Nikki Giovanni’s thoughts that she has to get out in order for others to understand her struggle.  The tone/attitude of this poem seems to be sad and explains the speaker’s experiences in the midst of events that are occurring during the civil rights movement. She uses a lot of words that relates to death or things being destroyed. I believe she wanted us to understand that it is important for us to destroy society’s stereotypes in order for people to live a peaceful and free life.

" The Great Pax White"

“The Great Pax Whitie”

 In the poem “The Great Pax Whitie” Nikki Giovanni incorporates motifs pertaining to racism, religion and war.  This poem is a little more complex compared to the previous poems I’ve read. I started analyzing this poem by defining the key words in the title.  The first definition I got from the word Pax’ means a stable period under powerful empire. Given that, this time was during the civil rights movement the reader can assume during this time the African American community was under a powerful empire. The speaker speaks about different topics that are relevant to her life during this time. She incorporates some individuals from the bible and talks about the Catholic Church. This could possibly show controversy amongst the religious community. I believe this poem is written to explain how the individuals are under a powerful empire and they're struggling to get out of the situation. However this poem also shows how people can be judgmental. The speaker says “Noah packing his wife and kiddies up for a holiday row row row your boat but why’d you leave the unicorns, Noah huh? Why’d you leave them”?  In the bible Noah was known for his art that carried several animals.  The unicorn is a similar to an animal that isn’t consider real, but the speaker questioned that idea. She asked, why you would leave them”, however if they were considered animals they would’ve been on Noah’s Art.  This poem seems to contradict everything society is trying to convey. I believe this makes the poem a little more complex than what it really is.

Nikki Rosa

“Nikki Rosa”

Nikki Giovanni‘s poem “Nikki Rosa” reflects her childhood experiences.  The poem takes place in 1968 because that’s when all of her poems were published but the poem is initially referring back to her childhood. Along with the previous poem, Nikki Giovanni was writing during the civil rights movement. I believe this poem was written to her story. This poem wasn’t created to make someone feel bad or sad but to understand her struggle and how times have changed. I think the speakers message was trying to show how, you tend to understand something you have experienced for yourself, rather than trying to understand someone else’s struggle.  The structure of this poem is a little different from the other poems.  Instead of incoporating several stanza’s this poem was written as one big stanza and I think that  changed the context of the poem. Nikki Giovanni includes several of her family members in this poem, which shows how family oriented she was. There weren’t many big words used in this poem but she does mention the word ‘remember’ a lot. The tone of this poem gives off a proud attitude. I say this because; although Nikki Giovanni had a hard life she was still proud of her struggle and her childhood experiences.

"Poems For Black Boys

“Poem for Black Boys”

Nikki Giovanni’s “Poem for Black Boys” highlights the idea of African American males regarding their issues with society.  The title relates to the speaker message she is trying to convey in the poem by writing the poem to the individuals she wants to inform. It tells her point of view of how the Black Boys should act during the civil rights movement verses the non violent movement that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr tried to portray. The poem takes place during the civil rights movement in 1968. During this time in history there were different events where segregation and racism were present. The black boys were being treated differently based upon the color or their skin. The speaker would be Nikki Giovanni mainly because she is the writer of the poem and speaking from her point of view. I believe the poem was written to inform and enlighten the black boys about what should be done in the midst of the civil rights movement.  The theme topic would be revolution and how it was important to speak up. She incorporates games and songs to show a better understanding of the rebellious tactics she believed in. The languages used in this poem were very short words but includes metaphors to make the poem more challenging.  There weren’t many images that were being illustrated in this poem; however the use of imagery was used.  The tone of this poem gives off a more violent attitude that influences black boys to stand up for themselves. Nikki Giovanni also uses allusion to convey her message to the black boys. She refers to Dr.King and Rap Brown and their position during this time. The speaker wants the reader to understand the idea of not following the rules or morals of the stereotypical black man, which makes them more of an important addition to the movement.

A Historical Footnote to Consider Only When All Else Fails"

“A Historical Footnote to Consider Only When All Else Fails”

Nikki Giovanni’s “A Historical Footnote to Consider Only When All Else Fails” talks about different Historical events during the civil rights movement.  The title of the poem essentially explains the message that is being conveyed in the poem.  I believe this poem is written to inform the audience on historical events that are occurring. However, Nikki Giovanni makes this poem a little complex. It is complex because of the sarcasm that is being used. I think sarcasm in this separates what’s morally and ethically correct. For example, she says “We must move on to the true issues of Our Times like mini-skirt rebellion”. This is where her sarcasm takes place and makes her idea’s a little scattered if you’re a first time reader. The tone of this poem is very influential that could possibly persuade the audience into understanding the important problems rather than the minor issues that the white community wants them too value. After analyzing this poem it seems like the speaker is trying to show competition between the white and black communities.  I inferred this idea from the stanza that talks about the ‘The Temptations’ (singing group) and the CIA which was more similar to the government and the white community. It says “And I expect you to realize that the temptations have no connection with the CIA”. Nevertheless, the competition never seemed to cease between the black and white communities.

Nikki Giovanni

 

 

Nikki Giovanni was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and grew up in Lincoln Heights, an all-black suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio. She published her first book of poetry, Black Feeling Black Talk in 1968 along with a second book launching her career as a writer. Nikki Giovanni was dubbed the “Princess of Black Poetry”, and was most recently, one of Oprah Winfrey’s twenty-five “Living Legends”. A great amount of her books have received honors and awards. Her spoken word recordings have also received recognition and honors. Giovanni is an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and has received Life membership and Scroll from the National Council of Negro Women. Black Enterprise named her a Women of Power Legacy Award winner for work that expands opportunities for other women of color. Nikki Giovanni is a well-known Professor at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.

I would like to study Nikki Giovanni because of her impact on the world and poetry itself. Learning about her accomplishments has influenced me to learn more about her. She has been recognized for a great amount of achievements and her poetry seems very enlightening. My favorite poem by Nikki Giovanni would be “My House”.  Her style of writing is very evident and she uses a lot of metaphors. It seems like love poem but I couldn’t really analyze the true meaning of the poem. However, I am looking forward to reading many more of works and learning more and more about the Famous Nikki Giovanni. J