homage to my hips
these hips are big hips
they need space to
move around in.
they don't fit into little
petty places. these hips
are free hips.
they don't like to be held back.
these hips have never been enslaved,
they go where they want to go
they do what they want to do.
these hips are mighty hips.
these hips are magic hips.
i have known them
to put a spell on a man and
spin him like a top!
[1987]
It's crazy how we're all so beautiful and unique and yet we try to fit into this narrow frame the media shapes for us. Women especially have been told to conform to a certain standard set by society. Defined collarbones and thigh gaps seem to be every woman's goal, but beauty comes in so many more forms and that's what Lucille Clifton was trying to convey. "Petty places" is her way of saying she doesn't care what others think. Insecurity and obsession with one's image is petty. Her hips are "free hips." You can tell she's happy with the way she looks and her carefree attitude comes as a result of this self-confidence. Phrases like "held back" and "enslaved" refer to the way women are pressured to look a certain way, to "conform," when in reality, a woman's hips should be celebrated, since they help support new life. Clifton is proud of her "mighty...magic hips" and she wants other women to feel the same!
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