Rejection In Nikki Giovanni's Poem 'Woman'

“Woman” by Nikki Giovanni is a poem about a woman who is going through rejection. The woman wants a man to love her, and is opening up to him, but her man constantly rejects and denies her. The poem is figuratively about how people shouldn't change who they are just because others do not accept them. The author also conveys that people should not hold back from expressing their feelings. People should have the freedom to share what they want, and should not be discourage to do so. Through the poem, Nikki Giovanni uses metaphors to convey the idea that one doesn't need validation from others to accept one’s self.
Even if people don’t support or listen to a person’s ideas, one shouldn’t let others discourage her from sharing her ideas as seen through metaphors in the poem. In the poem, the man constantly rejects the women, “She wanted to be a robin/ singing through the leaves/ but he refused/ to be her tree” (1-4). He refuses to hear her, or support her. The metaphor portrays the relationship by comparing her to a robin singing. The robin represents the woman, and
Throughout the poem, the man refuses to support and help her grow. He also refuses to her special someone. As the woman describes how the man responds to her, “she wanted to be a blade/ of grass amid the fields/ but he wouldn’t agree/ to be the dandelion” (1-4). She wants him to be the “dandelion” among a field of grass, a metaphor for something or someone special, in comparison with plain grass. Dandelion is also a weed, which is hard to get rid of, because it’s strong. This is another metaphor for the man being strong and supportive. In the end, “she decided it was all/ right”(22-23), she is fine with the man refusing her love. Ultimately, the man’s refusal to be someone special and supportive to the woman, the fact remains that he still is, whether or not he approves of