Maya Angelou Research Paper

Angelou was born in Missouri in 1928. She spent most of her childhood in Stamps, Arkansas, pre Civil Rights Movement with her grandmother and her older brother. Angelou is most known for writing the poem Caged Bird. In the first stanza about the caged bird, Angelou declares that the bird, “can seldom see through/ his bars of rage/ his wings are clipped and/ his feet are tied/ so he opens his throat to sing”(Caged Bird). Angelou uses the bird as a metaphor for oppressed African Americans during this time period; the bird is held back by a barrier, just like African Americans were held back by unjust laws, a corrupt legal system, and their white peers who saw them as inferior. Similar to the bird, Angelou felt held back by others, but she did not let the “bars of rage” hold her back from her potential so, like the bird, she “opened her throat to sing” and used her voice to protest for herself and those who could not advocate for themselves.

Maya Angelou is a leading literary voice of the African-American community. She writes of the triumph of the human spirit over hardship and adversity. “Her style captures the ca-dences and aspirations of African American women whose strength she celebrates.” (Library of Chattanooga State, n. d.) Maya has paved the way for children who has had a damaged

Maya Angelou was born on April 28, 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri to Bailey and Vivian Johnson. Her given name was Marguerite Ann Johnson, but she was nicknamed “Maya” by her older brother. Over the course of her life, Angelou had many jobs ranging from a fry cook to a sex worker. She broke through as both an author and poet with her publication of her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in 1969. (Wikipedia.com) From that point on, Maya Angelou would become a very prominent figure in American literature.

“You have tried to destroy me and although I perish daily I shall not be moved,” (Angelou, 2014), says Maya Angelou in her Commencement speech to the 1992 Spelman College graduates. Poet and award-winning author, Maya Angelou, is most well known for her poetry, essay collection, and memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Angelou happened to be the first black female cable car conductor who later started a career in theatre and music (Maya Angelou: Poet and Historian, n.d.). Once her acting and musical career began to take off, Angelou began touring with productions and released her first album Miss Calypso (Maya Angelou Fast Facts, 2017). Later, Angelou earned a Tony Award nomination for her role in the play Look Away and an Emmy Award nomination for the work she performed in the television mini-series Roots (Maya Angelou: Poet, Civil Rights Activist, Author, Activist, 2017). Angelou was also the first African American woman to have her screenplay produced (Maya Angelou: Poet, Civil Rights Activist, Author, Activist, 2017). Out of the number of poetry collections Angelou published, Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ‘Fore I Die happened to be her most famous collection that was also nominated for the Pulitzer Prize (Maya Angelou: Poet, Civil Rights Activist, Author, Activist, 2017). The focus of this paper is to critique Angelou’s credibility, sincerity, and appeal to her whole audience in her delivery during the Spelman Commencement Address in 1992.

Born April 4, 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri. Maya Angelou's given name was Marguerite Johnson, Maya and her brother Bailey spent most of their childhood living with their grandmother in rural Arkansas. Maya grew up in Stamps and learned what it was like to be a black girl in a world whose boundaries were set by whites. After five years of living with her grandmother she moved back to her mother's home in Missouri. This was a bad turn for her, when her mothers' boyfriend raped her. This violent act

The inspiring African-American woman born in 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri has been one of the many influential voices of our time. Educating herself and having love for the arts helped mold her life into what she imagined becoming a poet, memoirist, novelist, educator, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, and even a civil rights activist. During her early years while still in High School Dr. Angelou experienced brutal racial discrimination directing her to the values of traditional African-Americans.

Maya Angelou was originally born Marguerite Anne Johnson, but she was known as Maya Angelou.. Maya Angelou, born on April 4, 1928, is the youngest daughter of Vivian Baxter Johnson and Bailey Johnson. Maya Angelou’s parents split while she was young; therefore, she and her older brother, Bailey , had to go live with their father’s mother, Anne Henderson , in Stamps , Arkansas. Maya Angelou’s older brother, Bailey Jr., nicknamed Marguerite “Maya”, derived from “My” or “Mya Sister”. At the age of eight, Angelou was raped by her mother’s boyfriend, while visiting her mother. As a result to Angelou’s rape, her uncle killed her mother’s boyfriend. Maya Angelou was so shaken up about the incident that she stopped talking for five years. When she returned to the state of Arkansas, she was a virtual

Born April 4, 1928, in Saint Louis Missouri throughout her life, Angelou defied several obstacles placed in her path by social norms. Angelou had a trying childhood. Her parents divorced when she was very young, and she and her older brother were sent to live with their paternal grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas. During a visit with her mother, Angelou's mother's boyfriend raped her. Her uncles then killed the boyfriend, traumatizing Angelou. After her mother's boyfriend raped her and turned up dead a few days later, Angelou withdrew and chose to stay mute for five years. However,after much encouragement from her grandmother, who introduced her to literature, she gradually emerged as an artist. In 1944, Angelou gave birth to a son, Guy , at

Maya was born on April 4,1928, in St. Louis, Mo and she was raised there as well.

Maya Angelou was born in Saint Louis, Missouri on April 4, 1928. When Angelou was three years old, her parents got a divorce and she moved to the East side of Stamps, Arkansas to live with her grandma and older brother Bailey. During this time, Arkansas was an extremely segregated place, so Angelou had never seen a white person before. Most of the people in town imagined white people being ghosts and believed they could stick their hand right through them. Although Stamps was a very segregated town, it was also a very musical place. Angelou was eight years old when she began writing poetry and songs. She also enjoyed dancing, acting, being a street conductor, cooking, waitressing, and singing.

Throughout history there have been great poets and writers who have had great impact on the world. Some great poets are Fredrick Douglass, Langston Hughes, and W.E.B Du Bois. Although the most influential poet to me is Maya Angelou. Maya Angelou has made great contribution and impact through her poems, books, and movies. Maya Angelou was born April 4, 1928 in St. Louis Missouri.

Maya Angelou was a humble woman, whose poetry and memoirs were for the benefit of others. However, her work made a sure mark in history through numerous awards such as NAACP Image Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, and Grammy, and a Tony Award (Biography.com Editors). Angelou deserved every award and honor she received for her work in literary and performing arts. Achievements of this degree may have seemed out of reach for young African Americans, or any minority, until Maya Angelou paved the way. Raised as a Christian, sharing talents and advice was natural for Angelou.

Maya Angelou was an American poet and civil rights activist. She was born in April 4, 1928 and later died in May 28, 2014. The reason I chose Maya Angelou is because she was a great person that helped other people go through the hard times of life. She was born in St. Louis MO and died in Winston-Salem NC. She was mostly raised with Bailey her brother they both grew up most of their life together. She had also many problems in her life she was raped when she was only 8 by her boyfriends mother.

American poet, storyteller, activist, and autobiographer, Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri. Angelou has had a broad career as a singer, dancer, actress, composer, and first female black director, but is most famous as a writer, editor, essayist, playwright, and poet. There were also many authors such as Susan B. Anthony, Alice Walker, Christina Rossetti, Harriet Tubman, Arna Bontemps, and Langston Hughes.

Maya Angelou is one of the most important American Authors who ever lived. She was an African-American woman who spoke her mind and when someone told her she couldn’t do something, it made her want to do it even more so that she could prove them wrong (Shapiro). Her life was incredibly difficult, but it made her who she was and influenced her writing and poetry immensely. As Gary Younge once said, “To know her life story is to simultaneously wonder what on earth you have been doing with your life and feel glad that you didn’t have to go through half the things she has.” She is important because she influenced women, people of color, and anyone who has gone through hard times. Maya Angelou is an essential American author because of