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Analysis of still i rise by maya angelou
Analysis of still i rise by maya angelou
Analysis of still i rise by maya angelou
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If you were told that because of your skin color or your gender you weren’t good enough or you were not seen as privileged. Would you fall and stay on the floor or would you rise despite the hate you got? Maya Angelou does just that and she proves it in a so many ways. Maya Angelou poem, “Still I Rise” displays a variety of pathos a great purpose an amazing message about getting back up, challenged the wrongs, and had an audience that has seen or one day will see all the wrongs in our society.
The leader I choose was Maya Angelou. Maya Angelou was an African American Civil Rights activist, Author, & poet who issued 7 autobiographies 3 essay books and various poetry books, and had done a number of plays. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri on April 4, 1928 and recently died on May 28, 2014. Some time during World War 2 Maya won a Scholarship to study acting and dance at the California Labor School, in San Francisco, California. At the time Maya became the first African American female cable car conductor(A job she had for a short amount of time).
In these past weeks we been learning about Transcendentalist which is a vast word with a straight forward meaning. Where people feel empowered and their surrounding surpass their five senses intuition, imagination, overpower, logic, and reason. The source I used to explain transcendentalist was Still I Rise by Maya Angelou. It had a lot of meaning to me and connect to me too. Overall it talked about how she overcomes everyone's hatred toward her, every hateful word and faces every complication thrown at her and uses it to get stronger physically and successed.
This literacy source is a collection of Maya Angelou’s autobiographies and contains five different parts: Gather Together in My Name, Singin’ and Swinging’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas, The Heart of a Woman, All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes, and A Song Flung Up to Heaven. By looking at this work, one is able to witness Maya Angelou grow up in a racist society. Accordingly, Angelou focuses on what it was like being African-American in the 1900s; a time when Whites refused to accept that African-Americans were free. As specified by Angelou, “If growing up is painful for the Southern Black girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat” (9).
"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" (Angelou 12). These quoted words came from a strong, wise minded, African American woman whose legacy still lives on. In this essay you will understand a lot about Maya Angelou's early life on how she became famous, her careers, how many awards she has received, and also how her legacy continues to have an impact on people. Maya was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 4, 1928 (Angelou 8). During Maya's growth she spent most of her days at the library attending Toussaint L'ouverture Grammar school (Angelou 8).
In this poem, Maya Angelou’s poem speaks about how no matter what other’s say about you, you must rise above their petty thoughts and build your own strength to always be yourself, or in others words build empowerment to never change who you are. This is represented in the poem when Angelou says “You may write me down in history/With your bitter, twisted lies, /You may trod me in the very dirt/ But still, like dust, I’ll rise.” Angelou as well
The poem “Still I Rise” written by Maya Angelou and the story “The Scholarship Jacket” by Marta Saline, are two different kind of writing styles. One is a poem and the other is a story. Even though they might be two different kind of styles of writing, they still are somewhat similar. “Still I Rise” is a poem about conquering your goals in life and rising up to be the best you can possibly be. Mayas writing in this poem is very confident, in a way she almost sounds like she's bragging.
The frequent use of questions in Still I Rise illustrates how embracing heritage combats hate, creating an outspoken characterization for the speaker. The poem thoroughly discusses the struggles of black women in America. This is seen in her directly asking the reader questions like “Does my sassiness upset you?”(Angelou 5). The use of the word “sassiness” aligns with negative stereotypes that are commonly attributed to black women. The direct repetition of questions that Angelou uses towards hate reveals that though sassiness has been used against her, she is unapologetically proud; this reclaims the word from hate and oppression.
America is a symbol of freedom. The poems “I, Too, Sing America” by Langston Hughes and “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou both describe how America was rather unfair during their times. Langston Hughes was a key figure during the Harlem Renaissance and Maya Angelou did not become famous or recognized until her first autobiography. Even though “I, Too, Sing America” and “Still I Rise” have completely different tones, they both convey the message of how inequality was prevalent in America. Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou both talk about how in the future they will come back and be free.
Still I Rise advertisement does not support the typologies: assemblage, reappropriation, or genre play because it falls under redistribution instead. Redistribution happens when “a text reaches a new audience; expresses opinions and/or mobilizes collective action” (Edwards 47). This advertisement does just that as the “Still I Rise,” Maya Angelou poem is an already existing text. The audience of the advertisement is narrowed down to college students and the text is spread further within the
Despite Angelou frequently providing graphic recounts of physical abuse in her collection, 'Still I rise', Perkin’s- Gilman undoubtedly demonstrates to the reader, the equally damaging ramifications of emotional torment and abuse. Intriguingly, the female voice in both ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ and ‘Still I rise’ utilise the written form as an instrument for liberation, yet Angelou does so through the process of re-appropriation. In the poem 'Still I rise', Angelou depicts the first kind of oppression that the speaker has been subjected to- oppression that is rooted in writing. ' You may write me down in history, with your bitter twisted lies' is an implicit response to centuries of oppression and mistreatment faced by black people and immediately
Context/Purpose/Audience Still I Rise, written in 1978 by African American poet and civil-rights activist Maya Angelou, is a resoundingly courageous and unearthing poem with an inspiring invited reading directly related to the time period it was written in: during the declaration for Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The poem discusses an African American woman’s struggles against racism and hatred from the society. It consists of nine-stanzas, offering words of inspiration to those who have been oppressed. It sends a message of hope that even in the midst of adversity it is possible to overcome obstacles and find the inner strength and confidence to rise above them. This poem is very straightforward making the message more meaningful and affective.
In the olden day’s people were judged on not only what they would wear, what car they owned, or what class they were in. If the color of your skin did not match everyone else, you would be judge and considered an outsider. You were labeled even before people knew who you were as a person, they just saw how someone stood different. “Still I Rise,” by Maya Angelou illustrates a strong independent person who is being beaten down with words and hatful actions, however, found the courage and strength to rise above the enemies.
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.
