Mr. Freeman did not come in contact with Angelou again until months later, when he committed and completed the rape. Angelou predicted the rape and tells him no, but that did not stop him. He raped her. She remembered, “Then there was a pain. A breaking and entering when even the senses are torn apart. The act of rape on an eight-year-old body is a matter of the needle giving because the camel can’t. The child gives, because the body can, and the mind of the violator cannot” (Angelou 76.) From then on Angelou lived in fear of him raping or hurting her again. Mr. Freeman always would remind her if she told, her brother would die. She mentions how she as though she was no longer a child, and then that she felt as if she were dying. One day, when she was ill her brother and mother were changing her sheets when they found the stained panties she had hidden under the mattress. Despite Mr. Freeman’s threats, she told her brother the truth about Mr. Freeman, who told their grandmother. …show more content…
She was a remarkable woman who over came the worst, to become a role model, as well as one of the most successful and passionate black women writers. Angelou has written many autobiographies and novels, some influenced by a tragic experience in Angelou’s life. In Angelou’s most popular and most controversial novel, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou breaks silence about the harsh realties of sexual assault, loss of innocence, and changes opinions about rape victims. Angelou relates to Laurie Halse Anderson’s novel Speak through her many similarities with the main character, Melinda, and Angelou. Angelou is an inspirational figure which guides Melinda to overcome silence and speak out. Because of Angelou’s history of rape, learning Angelou’s life helps readers to understand why the poster of Angelou plays a prominent role in Melinda’s private closet and is a meaningful part of Melinda’s journey to overcome