Maya Angelou

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the life of Maya Angelou, one of the few well-recognized black female writers today. It looks at how she is internationally loved for her heartfelt, eloquent writing, her apparent dedication to race and women's issues and, above all, her rags-to-riches story that seems to epitomize the accessibility of the American Dream. It outlines the main events in her life from her birth as Marguerite Johnson to being homeless and having a wide variety of jobs, including that of a prostitute, moving into show business and, eventually, into the literary world. It shows how the general interpretation of her life's work and message is one of the empowerment of black culture and, specifically black women, through analysis of her autobiographical work, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings".

From the Paper:

"The general interpretation of her life's work and message is one of the empowerment of black culture and specifically black women. Because of the degree of assumed autobiography in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and her other poetic and novel-length works, her life and writing are assumed to be part of the same outgoing message. This message is proclaimed as one about liberation, power-creation, good choices and even a good work ethic. (For example, much is made of her story about becoming the first black train conductor in her town, and the work ethic that implied) However, before this interpretation can be fully accepted, there are certain critiques which must be made. Only by acknowledging these shadowy parts of her message and history can one truly appreciate (albeit with a grain of salt) the remainder of her place within American culture."

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