Explication of "Woman Work" by Maya Angelou

     "Woman Work" by Maya Angelou is a poem that speaks from the point of view of mothers everywhere. The first stanza is a meticulous list of all the things the speaker must do during the day. The nearly flawless rhyme scheme here almost makes this monotonous list seem endless. Maya Angelou has long represented strong feminist values  and this poem takes on the purpose of criticizing the people who believe women are subordinate to men. Not only does the woman of the household in this story have to raise a family, they must cook meals, clean the house (or as she refers to it, a "hut"), and keep a steady job, "Then see about the sick/And the cotton to pick" (13-14). With the seemingly never ending amount of tasks, the tone of the poem is immediately overwhelming and hectic for the reader. The consistent rhyme shows how this daily routine is dreadfully consistent in this woman's life.
     In the last four stanzas, she refers to vastly different forms of nature and weather. This could be the speaker, gazing out of a window, dreaming of the possibility of escaping one day instead of being confined to performing menial tasks. The speaker wants to feel the sunshine on her skin, representative of relaxation. She wants to feel raindrops upon her brow, a sense of relief after what is a hard day of work. She wants to be lifted up by the wind and float across the sky "'Til I can rest again". She then mentions  the gentle snowflakes, the mountains, and simple leaves and stones. As a woman practically trapped in the household she is expected to maintain, she finds solace in nature.