Alice Walker Woman Poem Analysis

There are three main types of lyric poetry. There are Sonnet, Haiku, and Free Verse varieties of lyric poetry, each with different forms and/or structures. For my assignment, I decided to compare two different poems, each from different structures of lyric poetry. The first one I decided on analyzing and comparing was a haiku by the Japanese poet Chiyojo. This poem is about a tree bearing no flowers, with a deeper meaning behind it, in my opinion. The second poem is a free verse poem by the poet Alice Walker, called ‘Women’. I am excited to share my opinion and analysis on these two, especially different poems!

‘Women’ is a free verse poem about what the title suggests, women. Alice Walker uses the lyrics of her poem to focus on her admiration

Buchanan. I could not find the original name of this poem, so I will be referring to this poem as ‘this haiku.’ In contrast to my previously picked poem, this one is very short. With only three lines, the haiku is about a tree that doesn't produce any flowers, giving it the freedom to sway in the wind. Being so compact, the poem did not give the author much room to show her thoughts in detail. The tone of being unburdened blossoms in the poem, but perhaps with a slight feeling of forlornness. Stating that the tree didn’t bear flowers could imply that it had the ability to, but didn’t. It could be that Chiyojo was comparing herself to a tree, the flowers symbolizing anchored possessions, pets, or children. Flowers bloom and are put on display, making me think of a physical responsibility, not an internal burden. The tree that yielded no flowers was compared to the willow tree, a tree that naturally doesn’t have flowers. Willow trees have branches that are bendable, whip-like and swing easily in a breeze. Without being tied down by the weight of the flowers, gave the tree the ability to sway in the wind and nature. If personified, having the ability to sway could mean the flexibility of travel and/or not having many responsibilities. I personally think that Chiyojo compared herself to a tree because she felt like she did not have any flowers

‘Women’ is a well written free verse poem about the women pushing for their children to be educated. Alice Walker uses great connotation on conveying her feelings and thoughts. She used an excellent structure in her poem. These two poems were written in completely different cultures and time periods, and have contrasting auras surrounding them. Chiyojo wrote a haiku, which is a completely different variety of poem. She uses personification on an inanimate object in nature, writing only three lines, and gives you an atmosphere of freedom and ease. The two cannot be compared to each other on a word count scale, but if you compare the residual impressions of them, they are nose and nose on the finish line. In my way of thinking, I prefer the haiku. Despite choosing the haiku over the free-verse poem, I still savored the spirit of Alice Walker's poem. The haiku is simple, yet completely changes the atmosphere in my mind without filling up space with excessive words. Being so short, the poem gives the reader the ability to form their own image in their own mind. I absolutely loved this haiku and its structure, so I believe it is absolutely worthy of being