Annotated Bibliography: Maya Angelou Angelou, Maya. I know why the caged bird sings. New York: random house, 1970. Print. Maya Angelou's book describes in great detail the events of her forming years and her emotions throughout.
On April 4th of 1928 Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri. She was given the name “Maya” by her brother, Bailey. Both Maya and Bailey were sent to live with their grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas after her parents divorced. When Maya went to visit her mother at the age of eight she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend.
After reading Maya Angelou’s quote, I realized there are still many things I have to learn about life. This quote made me think about how many things go unappreciated everyday, and how we should be thankful for these things. It also inspires me to work harder so that I can reach my goals in life. I need to learn this so that I can become a more appreciative and thankful person towards my family and friends.
Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928 and passed away on May 28, 2014. Throughout her lifetime, Angelou faced obstacles as an African American woman. Her first obstacle occurred when Angelou was eight year old and was raped by her mother’s boyfriend Freeman. After this experience with her mother’s boyfriend, she later on told her brother who then told the family. Freeman faced 1 day in jail for his punishment.
III. a. Maya Angelou was an avid writer, speaker, activist and teacher. As a result of the many hardships that she suffered while growing up as a poor black woman in the south she has used her own experiences as the subject matter of her written work. In doing this she effectively shows how she was able to overcome her personal obstacles. Her autobiography “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1970) tells the story of her life and how she overcame and moved forward triumphantly in spite of her circumstances.
Maya’s Ties with God Have you ever heard of Tupac cry, Maya Angelou was one, if not the only one who made him. Maya Angelou is one of the biggest voices of the 21st century. She does not talk, but she speaks, and she mostly speaks in the language of love. The reason? God.
Maya Angelou uses the extended metaphor to compare life to a road, because like a road, life is a path that's taken. However, also like a road, it's possible to change direction, to “step off that road, and cut… a new path. ”(Angelou 1.)Annie Johnson was forced to change her direction when she was left with her two sons and lack of money, due to her husband leaving for Oklahoma to pursue religion. The purpose of the metaphor is to show the reader that life isn’t one straight line, and “if the future road looms ominous or unpromising, and the roads back uninviting” (Angelou 2) then there’s always a possibility to change that path or road to something more desirable.
Angelou’s contribution to the Civil Rights Movement and her achievements as an activist were remarkable. While these achievements seem to be enough to last a lifetime, the Civil Rights Movement was only the beginning for Angelou. Angelou worked as an outspoken Civil Rights activist during the movement. But even after the Civil Rights Movement had ended, she continued to be a voice of humanity, speaking out against anything that harmed the human spirit. Angelou moved on to influence American society as a whole, from the 1970’s to the day she died, May 28, 2014.
Descriptive writing is very effective, especially in this case because Maya Angelou is able to cause the reader to imagine an entirely new picture than what they would imagine with normal words. The way she is able to connect herself to different objects like an old biscuit makes the person reading feel exactly what she had experienced. It makes the reader understand alot better and leaves them craving for more. One example of imagery that is used in the essay is located on paragraph 1. It states,"... like an old biscuit, dry and inedible."
What are your reasons when undertaking a mission? Annie Johnson wanted a more successful life for her family and herself. Farah Ahmedi and her mother wanted to live a better life in a new location. Ernesto wants to get a good education at his new English school.
Maya Angelou who is a great writer possesses many meaningful quotes but one that truly inspires my life the most is “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style”. What this means to me is some of us live day to day as we should while others are in fear about what they are going to encounter next. At times, I sit and ask myself should I be on edge like the ones who are in fear or should I wait for life to throw lemons at me as they do at the ones who live day to day. It is something interesting to meditate on and often takes me back to my childhood where I can truly relate to this. For me growing up in Hillside, New Jersey my young mind did not have any knowledge of the bad in the world or at least my parents made sure I did not experience it.
Like how Maya Angelou said “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. ”The way you treat people and the way you say it to them it will have more effect on it because,the attitude you may show towards that person. It’s like saying sorry to someone like maybe you did mean it but, you probably don’t show it.
I chose Maya Angelou for my character. I like Maya Angelou because she’s a big role model of mine. She has inspired me to do things more with my life then to sit around most of the day. She has inspired me to do better on my grades, work at home, and even to write more. Maya Angelou was from St. Louis Missouri and was born on April 4, 1928.
I have not read much poetry, which does not mean I do not enjoy it. I do enjoy reading the ones about success, confidence, and love. Although I like Shakespeare, it is hard for me to follow all of his work. I enjoy reading anything Maya Angelou does. Her work inspires me in every way.
“Because I was really white and because a cruel fairy stepmother, who was understandably jealous of my beauty, had turned me into a too-big Negro girl, with nappy black hair, broad feet and a space between her teeth that would hold a number-two pencil” (pg. 3). I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is Maya Angelou’s autobiography of her early life, growing into a young woman, and finding herself in the process. Maya Angelou grew up in the time of Segregation, trying to discover who she was separated from the rest of the world. With only her brother Bailey, and her grandmother, “Momma,” to take solace in, for most of her early life she felt as though she had no friends. The title is a metaphor.
