Contextual critical perspective to Lucille Clifton’s “Homage to My Hips”
As the name suggests Homage to my hips by Lucille Clifton talks about big hips. The poem was written in the 1980s when the society had pressured the women into criticizing themselves for having big bodies. In this poem, the poet proudly talks about her big hips and describes how the hips are free and they cannot fit in tiny little places. This poem describes how the poet has used imagery to describe her character.
To begin with, Lucille uses her hips to describe her body size. The female poet begins the poem by stating that her hips are big (Pujanes 2017). The sentence does not mean that the only body part that is huge in Lucille Clifton’s body is the hips. Though the author focuses on a specific body part, generally, she is huge and she has a huge body that needs space to move around. The author has used the hips to describe her body because the hips of a woman are mainly the core body part that women can be associated with, in society.
In the third line, the poet states that her hips are big and they do not fit in tiny little places (Pujanes 2017). In the 1980s when the poem was written, women with big hips and big bodies did not have a space in the fashion world neither did the public appreciate them more because the public had been brainwashed by the media to think that women should have small bodies. In this poem, the author stands firmly and she is proud of her big hips. When the poet states that her hips do not fit in the tinny petty spaces she is describing that she does not have to fit the social standards to fit appreciated but she is confident and she feels beautiful with her big hips.
The poet adds that her big hips cannot be held back, they have never been enslaved, and they go wherever they want (Pujanes 2017). In the line where the poet states that her big hips cannot be held back she is, using imagery to state that women cannot be held back by societal expectations and other cultural believes that consider women to be inferior in society. For example, during the 1980s women with big bodies could not be featured in fashion magazines, these are some of the societal and cultural believes that the author is saying that cannot hold her back.
The line that follows, Lucille Clifton goes ahead to state that her big hips have never been enslaved (Clifton 2020). In this line, the poet is bringing the aspect of race into the poem. During the days of slavery, black people were forced into doing things against their wish and they had no option but to conform to what their slaver wanted. Therefore, the poet is trying to say that though she is African American she has been free to do whatever she wishes with her big hips. This line can also be used to mean that the poet is not married. In the olden days when a woman was married, she was expected to be submissive to the husband and take care of the husband. In a way, feminists considered this a form of slavery because the wife would always do house chores and taking care of the children and the husband.
In line thirteen, the author states that her hips are mighty and they are known to put a spell on a man and spin him like a top (Clifton 2020). The poet uses this line to bring out two different meanings. The first picture Lucille Clifton tries to paint is that a woman’s confidence can seduce a man. According to the imagery created by the poet confidence and self-empowerment is the most attractive thing in a woman. Therefore, her confidence in her big hips can easily confuse a man and put him under a spell.
The other picture created by the line ‘these hips are mighty hips, I have known them to put a spell on a man and spin him like a top’ is that women, in general, are powerful than men (Clifton 2020). The society has long portrayed women to be second to men. Lucille Clifton being a feminist has a different opinion and she uses imagery in the poem homage to my hips to clearly state that when women are confident and empowered they become powerful than men.
These last lines in the poem of how mighty the hips of the poet are and how they can cast a spell on a man and spin him like a loop can also be translated the power of big hips (Clifton 2020). Curvaceous women are more seductive and therefore the author can be using imagery to demonstrate the seductive power of big hips.
The poem also has a confident tone that is noticeable throughout the poem. From the introduction of the poem, the author uses short, precise, and factual sentences that indicate the poet is confident about what she is saying or what she is talking about. Throughout the poem, the poet uses a tone commanding attention as she explains how confident she is with her big hips.
In conclusion, the poem homage to my hips explains how the poet, Lucille Clifton is proud of her big hips. Though the poem is focused on a specific body part, which is the hip, the author refers to women with big bodies. The poet encourages women with big bodies not to be held back by societal and cultural expectations of how the body of a woman should be but rather love their bodies and feel free to walk around in their bodies. The author has also used imagery in the poem to show how confidence and self-empowerment make women more powerful than men. Lucille Clifton also encourages women not to feel the need to feel in the tiny expectations of the society but rather be their selves and love their selves.
Bibliography
Clifton, Lucille. 2020. “Homage to My Hips” (Poem/Analysis)”. Lucille Clifton. https://lucilleclifton.wordpress.com/2011/12/11/homage-to-my-hips-poemanalysis/.
Pujanes, Kristel Marie. 2017. “Featured Poem: Homage to My Hips by Lucille Clifton”. The Quarter-Life Experiment. https://thebadbread.com/2017/10/07/featured-poem-homage-to-my-hips-by-lucille-clifton/.