A Poem - "A Conceit"

Issue 28 - "A Conceit" by Maya Angelou

A Conceit

Give me your hand

Make room for me
to lead and to follow
you
beyond this rage of poetry.

Let others have
the privacy of
touching words
and love of loss
of love.

For me
Give me your hand. 

-Maya Angelou, “A Conceit.” The Poetry of Maya Angelou.

---

Context

Maya Angelou (1928-2014) was born in Missouri. She was a poet, writer, and civil rights activist but she also spent time as a dancer and performer. Her life story and career span such breadth of experience it would be impossible to capture it in a couple sentences of context - check out wikipedia for starters!

Angelou’s work is often political or biographical in nature but this piece is a departure from that vein of her work. In poetry a “conceit” is a literary device similar to an extended metaphor where an idea is compared/embodied in a striking comparison. Here the poetic speaker contrasts the basic physical human connection of holding hands with the love that poets try to convey using poetry. The speaker laments the way that poetry obstructs true connection and vulnerability. Of course, the irony is that all this is being communicated via a poem.

---

About this Newsletter

“A Poem” is a simple newsletter. Each issue includes just one poem and perhaps a few sentences of context.

Thank you for reading with me,

Reilly Flynn