Phenomenal Woman' - an Act Against The Patriarchal Society

“Phenomenal Woman” is Angelou's critique of patriarchal society and the way in which it teaches women to belittle themselves: “Pretty women wonder where my secret lies. I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size But when I start to tell them, They think I'm telling lies. I say, It's in the reach of my arms, The span of my hips, The stride of my step, The curl of my lips”. 

The poetic voice in this poem is discussing her confidence despite not fitting into the traditional standard of beauty for women at the time. The women she is talking to believe she is keeping a “secret” because they cannot conceive or understand how this woman can have such an allure without being conventionally attractive, and they also believe that she is lying about her response. Angelou stating that the women listening think that the narrator is “telling lies” about her secret to confidence shows the profound psychological effect that cultural conditioning has on body image, as the women's visceral rejection of the truth means that it is unbelievable to them that a woman who does not meet the typical Western standard of beauty, and that the rigid patriarchal definitions of beauty are so ingrained into their psyche that they refuse to believe any perspective that does not fit the one perpetuated by the patriarchy. Angelou criticises this further by describing the speaker as not “built to suit a fashion model's size'. The narrator specifically attacks the fashion industry, an industry that thrives of women's insecurities and the industry which produces and perpetuates the everchanging standard of beauty. Angelou's narrator is unbothered by the fact that she does not conform to the fashion industry's rules, and she refuses to change herself to fit into this mould. This is shown formally by the length of the line; it is the longest line in the poem, which shows a visual refutation of the idea that she must diminish herself to match the fashion industry's ideal of beauty. 

Susan Bordo discusses the power that the patriarchy has over woman's bodies and the danger that this poses: “Through the pursuit of an everchanging, homogenizing, elusive ideal of femininity a pursuit without a terminus, requiring that women constantly attend to minute and often whimsical changes in fashion, female bodies become docile bodies, bodies whose forces and energies are habituated to external regulation, subjection, transformation, “improvement”. Through the exacting and normalizing disciplines of diet, makeup, dress  “central organizing principles of time and space in the day of many women” we are rendered less socially oriented and more centripetally focused on self-modification. Through these disciplines, we continue to memorize on our bodies the feel and conviction of lack, of insufficiency, of never being good enough. At the farthest extremes, the practices of femininity may lead us to utter demoralization, debilitation, and death'.

Angelou's narrator completely refuses to participate in the practices of femininity outlined by Bordo which are perpetuated by the patriarchy, and instead exhibits her self-acceptance. The parallelism in the last nine lines of each stanza promotes the theme of self-acceptance and confidence through repetition, and it also suggests the narrator's ability to keep listing attributes about her that make her “phenomenal”, meaning that she has an abundance of qualities that make her phenomenal, and that she cannot be reduced to elements of herself; everything about her makes her phenomenal, despite any flaws. It is also her radical self-acceptance that makes her irresistible to me: “Then they swarm around me, A hive of honey bees”.. The men around her are drawn to her passion for life and her unconditional self-love, something which cannot be said for the “Pretty women”, who are asking to know the secret to the narrators sexual allure. However, it could be argued that by including the attraction that the speaker has to men, Angelou is perpetuating the problem of the male gaze. It can be argued that the speaker's joy over the men that “Fall down on their knees” at the sight of her means that she embraces her body and confidence because she knows that it will attract men, or that her confidence comes from the fact that men desire her. This argument fails, however, as each stanza ends with the same phrase: “I'm a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That's me”. This refrain reminds the reader that the persona's confidence comes from her femininity and her womanhood; she is proud of her womanliness and this does not concern the desire of men or the male gaze. Furthermore, the final stanza is aimed to uplift and empower other women: “Now you understand Just why my head's not bowed. When you see me passing, It ought to make you proud”. The narrator refuses to bow her head, demonstrating how she refuses to belittle herself as patriarchal society expects, and she will not be a meek, demure, apologetic woman in order to please the patriarchy. She knows that her beauty is born out of her self-acceptance, and she encourages other women to accept themselves too and to find inspiration in her confidence. Ultimately, the poem says that instead of obeying to the norms set by society, women should reconnect with their own value and find validation from within. 

In conclusion, the poem implies that all women are capable of being phenomenal if they embrace who they are instead of trying to conform to arbitrary social criteria. The poem suggests that accepting and appreciating yourself is, in itself, an extraordinary and radical act within a society that promotes insecurity and self-loathing in women. It is this step towards unconditional self-love that makes a woman truly phenomenal.