INTRODUCTION

Good afternoon, my oral revolves around the global issue, the impact of power
on a woman’s actions from the field of inquiry, politics, power and justice. I found
it intriguing to explore my global issue particularly in the two works that I have
picked as the attitudes towards power are delineated in different magnitudes. My
literary text, the collection of poems by Maya Angelou set in the 20th century,
depict a more vindictive perspective of power, as she is an African-American
woman whose ancestors were enslaved and denied power. On the contrary, my
non-literary body of work, the times magazine cover pages elucidate 21st century
women in power from around the world. These women have a milder and more
responsible perspective of the same because they hold an important place in the
society.

LT WHOLE
To begin with I feel that in the collection of poems, Angelou skilfully depicts how the denial
of power and oppression of the black community has resulted in her to stand up fiercely
and fight against this as a woman belonging to the same community. This is conveyed
very pertinently through the use of apt word choice, a suitable structure and prominent
tone shifts in all the poems.
EXTENDED METAPHOR
This is evident in the poem I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, wherein the poet uses an
extended metaphor to compare the free and the caged bird.
SITUATIONAL IRONY
Other than this she brings out the stark contrast between the birds by the use of
situational irony in the lines ‘his wings are clipped and feet are tied, so he opens his throat
to sing’.This line clearly shows how the caged bird is unwilling to confine himself to the
cage thus he does whatever possible so that he can break free from there.The tone in this
is uplifting which shows her courage to fight for her community being a woman.
STRUCTURE
Along with this, she uses the structure of the poem very well to depict my global issue.
This is done through the use of an irregular number of lines which tell us that there is
inequality between the two races, and the even number of stanzas, convey that her
actions and struggle for equality is constant.
PHENOMENAL WOMAN
I also feel that my global issue is well depicted in the poem ‘Phenomenal Woman’ as the
poet makes use of powerful words, an empowering tone and an impressive structure to
portray the actions of this woman.
POWER PACKED WORDS
The use of power-packed phrases such as ‘I say’, suggests that her say is important to
people while the sentence ‘that’s me’ displays her assertiveness and faith in herself.
Throughout the poem the tone is of confidence and glorification of all women, thereby
subtly revealing her actions as a strong woman.
 STRUCTURE
Her confidence is also vividly showcased by an exquisite structure. The calligram in the
poem, physically looks like a woman and is divided into two parts. The first part
accentuates societal expectations whereas the second part displays her reaction to it, as
she has the audacity to keep a viewpoint different from society. Moreover, the poem is a
blank verse which represents her free flowing nature as she does not confine to the norms
imposed on her by people. This shows her power and implicit rebellion against the
stereotypes regarding women.

LT-EXTRACT
Maya Angelou’s rebellious actions are also shown in my favorite poem ‘Still I rise’, which is
also my extract. Throughout the poem Maya Angelou uses diverse words and literary
devices in order to highlight her struggle and thirst for power.
RHETORICAL QUESTIONS
For instance, she uses rhetorical questions in the lines ‘does my sassiness upset
you?’,‘did you want to see me broken?’ and ‘does my haughtiness offend you?’ These
lines clearly show how she sarcastically replies to her haters, by showing off her success
to them. It is also important to note that she uses personal pronouns in these sentences
such as ‘me’ and ‘my’, this demonstrates that she is trying to regain her power and is not
afraid to ask questions to her oppressors.
COLLOQUIALISM
Moreover she uses colloquialism in some places such as ‘sassiness’ and ‘diggin’’, which
emphasizes the pain and bitterness in her heart that has caused her to become mentally
strong enough to fight her battle on her own.
SYMBOLS
Furthermore, Angelou uses symbols that are increasing in value throughout the poem
such as ‘oil wells’, ‘gold mines’ and ‘diamonds’, in my interpretation, this is representative
of her increasing resilience and value in the society, which leads her to fight for justice.
GERUNDS, OXYMORON AND TONE
To add on, by the use of gerunds in ‘welling’ and ‘swelling’ the poet underlines her
undying energy and vitality, while the oxymoron in night and daybreaks suggests that she
has the power to eliminate darkness from the lives of the people of her community. Along
with this the tone throughout is painful, sarcastic, mocking and inspiring displaying her
self-claimed superiority and revolutionary actions.
STRUCTURE
This is also well depicted in the structure of the poem. The first seven stanzas are
quatrains and talk about the ill-treatment of blacks in society, followed by a sestate and a 9
line stanza. These represent her increase in rights and power, while also giving us an
insight to her perspective about the injustice to justify her actions in the quatrains.
METER
Besides this Angelou also makes use of the meter impressively. The first seven quatrains
switch between a trochaic tetrameter, trimeter and dimeter. This is because she does not
wish to fit into the rules of the society and defies them which is displayed by the wavering
feet. However, the last two stanzas completely switch to dactylic tetrameter which shows
she completely stops abiding by the norms built by the whites for her and defines a fully
new set of goals for herself. This insurgent action is also backed by the erratic rhyme
scheme which again shows the powerful and rebellious nature of this black woman.

NLT-WHOLE
In a complete contrast to my literary text, my non-literary body of work, the times
magazine cover pages feature women in power. These cover pages depict a viewpoint of
empowerment and highlight a sense of responsibility through the visual and linguistic
modes.
SHERYL SANDBURG-DRESS
In the first cover page we can see the COO of facebook, Sheryl Sandburg. The first thing
we notice is the bright red color of her dress paired with red heels. Her dress reveals her
feminine side which suggests that even though she is powerful she chooses to remain
lady-like. This delineates her actions as she defies the stereotype of successful women
being manly.
PYRAMID ILLUSION
Moreover the camera angle and use of color create an illusion of a pyramid while her head
is on the top which discloses her powerful place in the world. I also noticed that her head
covers the letter ‘M’ which may stand for men in the masthead TIMES, this may mean that
she does not fall into the shadow of men and is not subject to anyone, therefore
highlighting her unsubmissive actions.
TEXT
Similarly the text in the foreground reads, ‘do not hate her because she is successful’, in
my opinion, this is a generalization to all women who are powerful and struggle with being
accepted in society. This sentence is assertive and acts as a warning to people who are
jealous of her success.
HILLARY CLINTON
On the other hand, the second cover page spotlights Hillary Clinton who is a political
leader in the US.
TEXT
The word ‘firsts’ in this cover page denotes that she was the first lady who stood up for
presidential elections in the United States.
DRESS
Moreover, we can see her wearing the color blue, which is generally considered to be a
manly color; this is also a symbol of power since power is generally associated with men.
CAMERA ANGLE
Also, she is directly facing the camera that is representative of the world, which shows that
she is challenging the worldly conventions to gain power and respect in society. These
women effectively make the viewers realize the immense amount of power they have and
how society views the same through these modes.

NLT EXTRACT
The third cover page which is my extract, features the prime minister of New Zealand,
Jacinda Arden.
CAMERA ANGLE
In the cover page we can see her facing away from the camera which suggests that she is
future sighted and is deeply moved by the Christchurch attack that lately happened in her
country. Her facial expressions are serious which show that she is shocked and hurt by the
same.
DRESS, HAND AND RING
We can also see her wearing white which indicates that she is mourning for the innocent
lives lost in the Christchurch attack. Moreover we see her hand placed on a table
signifying authority and her wedding ring suggesting how she balances her work and
family life.
BACKGROUND
Along with this, the creator has intentionally kept the background light to put emphasis on
the heavy words written in black and convey the message meaningfully.
TEXT
The important text is placed on the left, creating a spotlight on her, which also
demonstrates that she is courageous and collected even after the mishaps in her country.
Furthermore, the word ‘deeds’ is highlighted in bold which compels the readers to think
about the instant action PM Arden took after the attack. Additionally, the use of collective
personal pronouns such as ‘us’ and ‘our’ put forward the fact that PM Arden believes in the
power of unity and wants to take all her citizens along with her on this journey of success.
While the question mark in the end implies that now she has the world’s attention and so
she uses her massive amount of power wisely and responsibly in order to bring justice to
her people and lead her country towards progress.

CONCLUSION
In conclusion I would like to talk about the aspect that struck me the most. The efficacy of
the distinct genres in depicting my global issue, while Maya Angelou’s poetry sheds light
on her painful experiences that have led her to start a rebellion in order to gain power. The
magazine cover pages make the readers aware of these women who are already in power
positions and the way they use them constructively. Thus I feel that the contrasting shades
of the impact of power on a woman’s actions is depicted efficiently in both my works.