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Question
What does the word “clipped” mean in this poem?
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Solution
Maya Angelou’s poem is replete with avian metaphors and imagery. The poem itself is a metaphor for the limitations one experiences in a life of oppression. Angelou has drawn from her own own experiences as a Black woman in the racially-segregated United States following the Civil War. In talking of birds, “clipping” involves trimming a bird’s wing feathers so that they cannot fly. Some bird owners or caretakers trim just one wing or enough feathers on each side, so as to render the bird unstable in flight but leaving them to be able to glide for a short distance. In Angelou’s poem, she uses the word “clipped” as a metaphor for the systemic forms of oppression. Being “clipped” in society on the basis of race (or other identities) prevents an individual from ever testing their capability for success. Historically, Black Americans have been denied access to schooling and certain kinds of work, and even today it is not uncommon for Black Americans to be turned down for jobs on the basis of their appearance. To be “clipped,” as Angelou implies, is to never be given a chance for success in life.
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