Black woman by Senghor

SENGHOR, L. S "FEMME NOIRE" (BLACK WOMAN)

1. Naked woman, black woman

Clothed with your colour which is life

With your form which is beauty

In your shadowI have grown up; the

Gentleness of your hands was laid over my eyes.

And now, high up on the sun-baked

pass, at the heart of summer, at the heart of noon,

I come upon yOu, my promise land,

And your beauty strikes me to hEart

Like the flash of an eagle.

2. Naked women, dark Women

Firm-fleshed ripe fruit, somber rapture

Of black wine, mouth making lyrical my mouth

Savannah stretching to clear horizons,

Savannah shuddering beneath the east winds

Eager caresses.

Carved tom-tom, taut tom-tom, muttering

Under the conqueror's fingers.

Your solemn contralto voice is the

Spiritual song of the beloved

Naked woman, dark woman

Summary

The poem celebrates a Black woman as a symbol of beauty, homeland, and African identity. The speaker connects her to his childhood, his cultural roots, and uses her as a metaphor for Africa itself. She represents life, beauty, and spiritual connection to his heritage.

Negritude Elements

This poem is classic Negritude - Senghor reclaims Black identity and African culture as sources of pride. He rejects colonial ideas that saw Blackness as inferior. Instead, he makes the Black woman sacred, linking her directly to the land, to spiritual traditions, and to beauty itself.

The poem fights back against European standards by celebrating African features and culture without apology. Her darkness isn't something to overcome - it IS beauty. This is Negritude's core mission: affirming African identity.

Imagery

Nature imagery dominates:

• "sun-baked pass," "heart of summer"
• "Savannah stretching to clear horizons"
• "ripe fruit," "black wine"
• "flash of an eagle"

These images connect the woman to African landscape - she becomes the land itself.

Sensory imagery:

• Touch: "gentleness of your hands"
• Taste: "black wine, mouth making lyrical my mouth"
• Sound: "carved tom-tom, taut tom-tom, muttering"
• Sight: color and form throughout

Literary Devices

Metaphor - The woman stands for Africa and African identity throughout

Repetition - "Naked woman, black/dark woman" anchors both stanzas, creating rhythm and emphasis

Personification - The savannah "shudders," giving the landscape human qualities

Apostrophe - The speaker addresses the woman directly, making it intimate

Synesthesia - "mouth making lyrical my mouth" mixes taste and sound

Alliteration - "firm-fleshed," "savannah stretching," "carved...taut"

Musical language - "tom-tom," "contralto voice," "spiritual song" connect to African musical traditions

Contrast - "naked" vs "clothed with your colour" - her natural state is already complete

The poem works because Senghor makes the political personal. He's not lecturing about colonialism - he's showing love, memory, and connection.