Question

"all I gotta do"

by Nikki Giovanni

all I gotta do
is sit and wait
sit and wait
and its gonna find
me
all I gotta do
is sit and wait
if I can learn how

what I need to do
is sit and wait
cause I'm a woman
sit and wait
cause I'm a woman
it'll find me

you get yours
and I'll get mine
if I learn
to sit and wait
you got yours
I want mine
and I'm gonna get it
cause I gotta get it
cause I need to get it
if I learn how

thought about calling
for it on the phone
asked for a delivery
but they didn't have it
thought about going
to the store to get it
walked to the corner
but they didn't have it

called your name
in my sleep
sitting and waiting
thought you would awake me
called you name
lying in bed
but you didn't have it
offered to go get it
but you didn't have it
so im sitting

all I know
is sitting and waiting
waiting and sitting
cause i'm a woman
all I know
is sitting and waiting
cause I gotta wait
wait for it to find
me

what is the main idea of the poem "all I gotta do"?
A. If people want change, they need to ask for help.
B. Woman who want change need to make it happen.
C. If people are patient, they will eventually get what they want.
D. Women have to wait for others to give them what they want.

Answer 1

I believe the correct answer is B. (Back story: At first, I thought it was about Rosa Parks and how she didn't give up her seat on the bus (because I didn't read the answer choices. lol).

Answer 2

B. Woman who want change need to make it happen.

Step-by-step explanation:

In this poem, Nikki Giovanni provides a commentary on the common idea that women have to wait for things to happen to them. Often, women are considered "passive" beings, and Giovanni criticizes this idea in the poem. Her ultimate goal is to subvert this assumption by showing that things do not simply "find us." Instead, we need to actively look for them. This means that if women want change, they actually need to work hard in order to make it happen.