Maya Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings"

Paper Summary:

The paper introduces, discusses, and analyzes the novel "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou. The paper discusses the themes of racism and segregation in the book, strong themes that are woven throughout this moving autobiography. The paper notes that in this book, author Maya Angelou recounts the story of her early life, including the racism and segregation she experienced throughout her formative years. The paper highlights that with wit, candor, and remarkable talent, Angelou shows that racism is a product of ignorance and prejudice, and that she has found the strength to rise above this crippling condition.

From the Paper:

"Angelou encounters an entirely different world when she and her brother move to St. Louis to live with her mother and her family. Here, she encounters black people like her mother and grandmother, who actually have some power in the community, and who live an entirely different life than the rural life in Arkansas. They have jobs, make relatively decent money, and do not live in abject poverty. However, they are also violent, engage in illegal activities, and ultimately her mother's boyfriend molests and then rapes Angelou, then threatens her with killing her beloved brother if she every tells an adult. This leads to a long period of time where she refuses to speak to anyone. She writes of this time, "There was an army of adults, whose motives and movements I just couldn't understand and who made no effort to understand mine".

Sample of Sources Used:

• Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. New York: Random House, 1969.
• Anonymous. "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." Freethought-Forum.com. 2005. 27 Feb. 2008. <http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1973>
• Bloom, Harold, ed. Maya Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." Philadelphia: Chelsea House, 1998.
• Dority, Barbara. "Artistic Repression in America." The Humanist May 1999: 36.
• Editors. "The 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000." American Library Association. 2007. 27 Feb. 2008. <http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/bannedbooksweek/bbwlinks/100mostfrequently.htm>

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