Men

Poet: Maya Angelou

Source: "The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou"

Year Published: 1994

____________________________

Men

When I was young, I used to

Watch behind the curtains

As men walked up and down the street. Wino men, old men.

Young men sharp as mustard.See them.

Men are always

Going somewhere.

They knew I was there. Fifteen

Years old and starving for them.

Under my window, they would pause,

Their shoulders high like the

Breasts of a young girl,

Jacket tails slapping over

Those behinds,

Men.

One day they hold you in the

Palms of their hands, gentle, as if you

Were the last raw egg in the world. Then

They tighten up. Just a little. The

First squeeze is nice. A quick hug.

Soft into your defenselessness. A little

More. The hurt begins. Wrench out a

Smile that slides around the fear. When the

Air disappears,

Your mind pops, exploding fiercely, briefly,

Like the head of a kitchen match. Shattered.

It is your juice

That runs down their legs. Staining their shoes.

When the earth rights itself again,

And taste tries to return to the tongue,

Your body has slammed shut. Forever.

No keys exist.

Then the window draws full upon

Your mind. There, just beyond

The sway of curtains, men walk.

Knowing something.

Going someplace.

But this time, I will simply

Stand and watch.

Maybe.

____________________________

This poem titled "Men" is somehow a glimpse of what has happened to the poet in the past. As we all know, every poem depicts a moment from its writer's past. This is the same for this poem because if you would notice, its verses reflects the deep emotions that Maya had experienced when she was raped way back when she was a child.

But, apart from the poet's background, Men also tells us how a young girl's view about the opposite sex has changed. If you'll carefully read the first stanza, it shows the innocence of a girl -curious about men and what love is all about. The age when there was very little knowledge about the pains that men and relationship could bring.

Moving on to the second stanza, it is when the persona (the girl) started to discover more about the nature of man. She has welcomed a man in her life, perhaps she fell in love with him and enjoyed the feeling of having someone caring for you. This is very much evident with the lines:

"They tighten up. Just a little. The
First squeeze is nice. A quick hug."

Yet, as we move on to the poem, you'll notice that the persona has also come into a realization that the man has started going beyond and takeing advantage of her being defenseless. It is then when she learned (in the hard way) that a man could not only give sweetness but also pain. In her case, the pain she experienced was really bad: "Your body has slammed shut. Forever. No keys exist." This reminds us of how Maya has reacted to the abuse she had experienced during her childhood. It was very traumatic for her. We recall that she became mute for years.

In the third stanza, the persona seems to go back from where it all started - watching men as they passed by. However, this time there's a difference because now she had experienced how cruel men could be.

The last stanza shows the persona's reluctance whether she'll just let the world go on with what they are doing and watch the men passing by or let go of what had happened and try to fall in love again. With the word "Maybe", it is clear that despite everything she had experienced, she has decided to move on and welcome new possibilities in her life -like falling in love again.

In the end, we have come to know that this poem isn't really about its title "Men". In fact, it is never the subject of the poem. The real focus of the poem is the woman. How she first wondered about her opposite sex, discovered new emotions such as love and passion, got hurt and importantly, moved on. Her struggles and triumph over them were perfectly presented in the verses of this inspiring poem. Truly, Maya Angelou knows how to empower women through her craft.