"This Is Not a Small Voice" is a poem by writer and activist Sonia Sanchez, published in her 1995 collection Wounded in the House of a Friend. The poem celebrates the power of Black individuals and communities, whose collective "voice" is like a sweeping "river" spreading love, healing, and creative "Genius." In addition to recognizing Black resilience in the face of oppression, the speaker also praises Black talent, ambition, and generosity of spirit.

• Read the full text of “This Is Not a Small Voice”

• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Summary

• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Themes

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    The Power and Beauty of Black People

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-27

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “This Is Not a Small Voice”

  • Lines 1-3

    This is not ...
    ... of these cities.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 4-7

    This is the ...
    ... Darryl. Shaquille.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 8-12

    Running over waters ...
    ... their river mouths.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 13-16

    This is not ...
    ... on its face.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 17-19

    This is a ...
    ... mends the children,

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 20-23

    folds them inside ...
    ... out closed vowels.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 24-27

    This is a ...
    ... you hear.

    

    

    

    

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• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Symbols

  • 

    The River

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 8-12: “Running over waters / navigating the hallways / of our schools spilling out / on the corners of our cities and / no epitaphs spill out of their river mouths.”

• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Parallelism

    

    

    

    

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    Where parallelism appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “This is not a small voice”
    • Line 2: “you hear ,” “this is”
    • Lines 2-3: “ a large / voice”
    • Line 4: “This is the voice of”
    • Lines 4-7: “ LaTanya. / Kadesha. Shaniqua. This / is the voice of Antoine. / Darryl. Shaquille.”
    • Line 13: “This is not a small love”
    • Line 14: “you hear,” “this is a”
    • Lines 14-15: “ large / love”
    • Line 17: “This is a love”
    • Line 24: “This is a love”
    • Line 25: “This is a love”
    • Line 26: “This is not a small voice”
    • Line 27: “you hear.”

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “voice / you”
    • Lines 2-3: “large / voice”
    • Lines 5-6: “This / is”
    • Lines 8-9: “waters / navigating”
    • Lines 9-10: “hallways / of”
    • Lines 10-11: “out / on”
    • Lines 11-12: “and / no”
    • Lines 13-14: “love / you”
    • Lines 14-15: “large / love”
    • Lines 15-16: “learning / on”
    • Lines 17-18: “hands / that”
    • Lines 18-19: “sails / mends”
    • Lines 20-21: “they / toast”
    • Lines 21-22: “flesh / where”
    • Lines 22-23: “alphabet / and”
    • Lines 26-27: “voice / you”

  • Caesura

    

    

    

    

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    Where caesura appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “hear            this”
    • Line 5: “Kadesha. Shaniqua. This”
    • Line 7: “Darryl. Shaquille.”
    • Line 14: “you hear            this is a large”
    • Line 15: “love, a”
    • Line 18: “nourishes, conceives, feels”

  • Allusion

    

    

    

    

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    Where allusion appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-7: “This is the voice of LaTanya. / Kadesha. Shaniqua. This / is the voice of Antoine. / Darryl. Shaquille.”

  • Imagery

    

    

    

    

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    Where imagery appears in the poem:

    • Lines 8-12: “Running over waters / navigating the hallways / of our schools spilling out / on the corners of our cities and / no epitaphs spill out of their river mouths.”
    • Line 17: “This is a love that crowns the feet with hands”
    • Line 18: “feels the water sails”
    • Lines 22-23: “where they suck the bones of the alphabet / and spit out closed vowels.”

  • Metaphor

    

    

    

    

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    Where metaphor appears in the poem:

    • Lines 8-12: “Running over waters / navigating the hallways / of our schools spilling out / on the corners of our cities and / no epitaphs spill out of their river mouths.”
    • Lines 20-23: “folds them inside our history where they / toast more than the flesh / where they suck the bones of the alphabet / and spit out closed vowels.”
    • Line 24: “This is a love colored with iron and lace.”

  • Asyndeton

    

    

    

    

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    Where asyndeton appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-11
    • Lines 14-16
    • Lines 17-22

• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Navigating
  • Epitaphs
  • Closed vowels
  • (Location in poem: Line 9: “navigating the hallways”)

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “This Is Not a Small Voice”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Speaker

• “This Is Not a Small Voice” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “This Is Not a Small Voice”

• More “This Is Not a Small Voice” Resources

  • External Resources

    • The Poet "Uncensored" — A 1991 episode of Writers Uncensored that features Sonia Sanchez and fellow poet Lucille Clifton. 

    • Interview with the Poet — A 2021 Boston Review interview with Sanchez.

    • The Poem Aloud — A reading of the poem by Peyton Ball. 

    • Video Q&A with the Poet — A video interview with Sanchez, courtesy of Stony Brook University.

    • An Introduction to the Poet — An introduction to the life and work of Sonia Sanchez, via the Poetry Foundation.

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