Quilts

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2007

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Further Reading & Resources

Related Poems

“Nikki-Rosa” by Nikki Giovanni (1970)

“Nikki-Rosa” is a poem looking back on Giovanni’s childhood as a metaphor for how childhood happiness is misconceived, based on racial prejudices. It is widely cited as an early success. It demonstrates Giovanni’s talent for speaking as representative for a group of people—which has always been a key element of her writing. The poem declares how she wants to be remembered, which is a sentiment echoed in “Quilts.”

“For Tupac Amaru Shakur” by Sonia Sanchez (1998)

Sonia Sanchez is a contemporary of Giovanni in the Black Arts Movement. They both lived, wrote, and were involved in the same activist groups in New York in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Both women likely worked with Tupac’s mother, Afeni Shakur, in the Black Panther Party. Similar to Giovanni’s writing, Sanchez writes with raw tenderness and an expansive voice that recognizes the weight of speaking for a community in times of tragedy as well as times of joy.

“A Woman Speaks” by Audre Lorde (1997)

Lorde’s poem follows a similar free-verse structure that alternates between short and longer lines to make the reader focus on the intent of the words. “A Woman Speaks” also follows a speaker who uses first person to tell a layered story through metaphor. In this case, the poem evokes images of magic to represent what it means to be a woman of color.

Further Literary Resources

“Nikki Giovanni: Finding the Song in the Darkest Days” by Elizabeth A. Harris (2020)

This article is an interview with Giovanni about her book Make Me Rain. The conversation focuses on Giovanni’s influence on American poetry throughout her long career. It discusses her enjoyment of old age, how she continues to learn from new generations, and her pride in her life’s work. Most importantly, the interview gently delves into Giovanni’s sexuality. In doing so, it shows the enduring love of a life partnership.

“Nikki Giovanni: I am Black, Female, Polite…” by Peter Bailey (1972)

Written early in Giovanni’s career, this article focuses on her youthful rising star on the poetry scene in America. It shows her early influence, popularity, and magnanimous appeal during an era of massive cultural change. The article also demonstrates the activist focus from the start of her career, which never dimmed, but changed tone over time. Most importantly, when Bailey asks Giovanni about her first spoken word album, she shows a keen respect for her elders. This shows that she understood the range of her audience: She wrote the album for her grandmother, so she chose music and language to appeal to poetry lovers of any age.

Transcription of Nikki Giovanni’s Convocation Address by Nikki Giovanni (2007)

Nikki Giovanni is a powerful speaker. When tragedy happened on the home turf of the university where she teaches, she rose to the occasion right away and wrote a speech to inspire hope in the whole campus. This rippled outward and inspired hope nation-wide in the US. She delivered the speech in the same year as she published “Quilts,” so her style of writing at this time is the same. However, contrary to the figurative language in “Quilts,” Giovanni utilizes both figurative and exact language that is full of purpose in her community in 2007.