"Still I Rise"

I really enjoyed reading this poem, I found it very inspirational and motivating. It didn't take me very long to get a fairly clear view of what I think this poem is trying to say. It is my own understanding that "Still I rise" by Maya Angelou is addressing the historical issues of racism and slavery towards the African American people. It shows how, despite the fact that these people were treated so poorly, they didn't let that treatment drag them down.

I agree fully with the marginal notes written on the poem and understand completely how they connect with the poem. If I were to add a marginal note to the poem, however, I would say how the break in the poem (...) signifies a large change in the format of the poem and how it even splits the poem into two parts.

Two similes that I found in this poem were:

"'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells

Pumping in my living room."

and 

"I laugh like I've got gold mines

Diggin' in my back yard"

Two allusions that I found were: 

"Out of the huts of history's shame"

and

 "Up from a past that's rooted in pain"

Two motifs that I found were the use of "I rise" and "You may", as these were repeated multiple times in the poem.