This is my final Giovanni poem for you all! This is actually the poem that I chose to do my analytical paper on as well. The picture is an excerpt from the poem. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a picture of the full version. "Habits" is about Nikki's reflection on what habits are and how they are formed or picked up. After reading and rereading the poem hundreds of times, I've concluded that the universal theme is that the habits that one acquires over doing something for a long period of time are the ones that stick with you. The habits that one obtains because of laziness or observation can be forgotten just as easily as they are picked up. Giovanni uses a lot of consonance in her piece in order to show that. The repeated suffix"-ing" in stanza 5( not shown in the picture) helps to emphasize that her lover presently and consistently does things that makes her feel unloved. When you do something for a long period of time, whether it is good or bad, it ends up becoming a habit, and it is hard to get rid of because you've been doing it for so long. In this particular example, the poet shows how her lover's continuous actions of not showing true love has become a habit. I admire how well Nikki Giovanni gets her ideas across in every poem, simultaneously teaching a valuable life lesson to her readers. I can honestly say that I've enjoyed learning about her and reading some of her influential pieces!!!



Works cited:
“Nikki Giovanni.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 2 Apr. 2014, www.biography.com/people/nikki-giovanni-9312272. Accessed 23 Aug. 2017.

“Nikki Giovanni.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Aug. 2017, en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikki_Giovanni. Accessed 23 Aug. 2017.

“POEM: A POEM OF FRIENDSHIP BY NIKKI GIOVANNI.” PoemHunter.com, m.poemhunter.com/poem/a-poem-of-friendship-4/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2017.

Giovanni, Nikki. “Choices.” PoemHunter.com, 10 Dec. 2013, www.poemhunter.com/poem/choices-144/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2017.

Giovanni, Nikki. “Resignation.” Poets.org, Academy of American Poets, 29 June 2016, m.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/resignation. Accessed 23 Aug. 2017.


Shimmytwist. “Posts about nikki giovanni on of poetry and prose.” Of poetry and prose, fingerprintsonglass.wordpress.com/tag/nikki-giovanni/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2017.

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