The Full Text of “homage to my hips”
The Full Text of “homage to my hips”
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“homage to my hips” Introduction
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“homage to my hips” Summary
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“homage to my hips” Themes
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Femininity, Empowerment, and Freedom
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Lines 1-15
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “homage to my hips”
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Lines 1-5
these hips are ...
... petty places. -
Lines 5-7
these hips ...
... be held back. -
Lines 8-10
these hips have ...
... want to do. -
Lines 11-15
these hips are ...
... like a top!
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“homage to my hips” Symbols
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The Speaker's Hips
Where this symbol appears in the poem:- Lines 1-15
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“homage to my hips” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Repetition
Where repetition appears in the poem:- Line 1: “these hips are big hips”
- Line 2: “they”
- Line 4: “they”
- Lines 5-6: “these hips / are free hips.”
- Line 7: “they”
- Line 8: “these hips”
- Lines 9-10: “they go where they want to go / they do what they want to do.”
- Lines 11-12: “these hips are mighty hips. / these hips are magic hips.”
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Personification
Where personification appears in the poem:- Lines 5-15
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Assonance
Where assonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “these,” “hips,” “big”
- Line 2: “they,” “need,” “space”
- Lines 2-3: “to / move”
- Line 4: “they,” “fit into little”
- Line 5: “petty,” “places,” “these”
- Line 6: “free”
- Lines 8-9: “enslaved, / they”
- Line 10: “to do”
- Line 11: “these,” “mighty”
- Line 12: “these”
- Line 14: “man and”
- Line 15: “spin him”
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Enjambment
Where enjambment appears in the poem:- Lines 2-3: “to / move”
- Lines 4-5: “little / petty”
- Lines 5-6: “hips / are”
- Lines 13-14: “them / to”
- Lines 14-15: “and / spin”
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Consonance
Where consonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “these hips,” “hips”
- Line 2: “space”
- Line 3: “around in”
- Lines 4-5: “fit into little / petty”
- Line 5: “ places,” “these hips”
- Line 6: “are free”
- Line 7: “like,” “be,” “held,” “back”
- Line 8: “hips have,” “never,” “been,” “enslaved”
- Line 9: “where,” “want”
- Line 10: “what”
- Line 11: “mighty”
- Line 12: “magic,” “hips”
- Line 13: “have,” “them”
- Line 14: “put,” “spell,” “on,” “man and”
- Line 15: “spin,” “him,” “like,” “top”
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Alliteration
Where alliteration appears in the poem:- Line 5: “petty places”
- Line 6: “hips”
- Line 7: “held”
- Line 8: “hips have”
- Line 9: “where,” “want”
- Line 10: “what,” “want”
- Line 11: “mighty”
- Line 12: “magic,” “hips”
- Line 13: “have”
- Line 14: “spell”
- Line 15: “spin”
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Simile
Where simile appears in the poem:- Lines 13-15: “i have known them / to put a spell on a man and / spin him like a top!”
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“homage to my hips” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Spell
- Top
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(Location in poem: Line 14: “spell”)
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “homage to my hips”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“homage to my hips” Speaker
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“homage to my hips” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “homage to my hips”
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More “homage to my hips” Resources
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External Resources
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Lucille Clifton Reads the Poem — Watch Lucille Clifton give a reading of "homage to my hips" and talk about her thoughts on body image, societal expectations, and what inspired her to write the poem.
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The Poet's Life — For more information about Lucille Clifton, check out this overview of her life and work.
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A Lucille Clifton "Starter Kit" — Check out this essay by the poet Reginald Dwayne Betts, who assembles a "starter kit" for first-time Lucille Clifton readers. He also writes movingly about the impression her poetry made on him when he was in prison as a young man.
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Spinning Tops — To better understand or visualize a spinning top, take a look at this brief Wikipedia entry about the toy.
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Poetry Foundation Interview — Read about Lucille Clifton's writing process in this interview published by the Poetry Foundation.
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LitCharts on Other Poems by Lucille Clifton
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