Abstract
This paper is an analysis of the cultural influences that young Maya and Bailey Junior are subjected to as children. The book "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings" depicts a number of these influences, and this paper names and analyzes a select number of them. The paper format is a thesis introduction, three main points with paragraphs on each, and a conclusion.

Tags:and, bailey, cultural, influences, junior, maya, on, young

Abstract
This paper examines Maya Deren's first and most famous film, "Meshes in the Afternoon", a film she made with her husband, Alexander Hammid. This paper analyzes the various elements of the form of this dream-like film, including the sound and mise-en scene. The paper also examines the relationship between the form and the content of this film, and in particular how this relationship created the meaning of the film. This paper argues that Deren chose to use film as an art form, rather than as a means to tell a story. The paper shows how through the form of the film and through the elements of the form, rather then through narration, Deren tell her 'story'.

From the Paper
"Maya Deren was a talented filmmaker, and today she is recognized as one of the pioneers in experimental and Avant-garde filmmaking in the world. This paper will examine her first and most famous film, "Meshes in the Afternoon", a film she made with her husband Alexander Hammid. The film was deeply personal for Deren, and the couple also stars in the film. This paper will analyze the various elements of the form of this dream-like film, including the sound and mise-en scene. It will also examine the relationship between the form and the content of this film, and in particular how this relationship created the meaning of the film."

Tags:maya deren, meshes in the afternoon, experimental f

Abstract
This paper discusses Maya sculptures and other artwork from the period AD 300-800. It discusses the stylistic elements of Maya art that are found in different cities throughout Guatemala. The paper then looks at the many similarities and differences apparent in the architecture and the sculptures of Maya art. The paper concludes that by seeing the Maya cities in person is truly the only way to appreciate the beauty and minute intricacies of Maya sculptures, architecture and paintings.

From the Paper
"Peter D. Harrison's book The Lords of Tikal and Carolyn E. Tate's Yaxchilan both provide marked differences between the architecture and sculptures of Tikal and Yaxchilan. In Tate's book, she provides many visual structures I was able to see and enjoy, whereas, Harrison provided more information on the artwork. Because of these differences, I found Harrison's book on Tikal much more useful and the information more organized for use in my research for this paper, than Tate's book on Yaxchilan. I believe that by seeing the Maya cities in person is truly the only way to appreciate the beauty and minute intricacies of Maya sculptures, architecture, and paintings."

Tags:motif, design, style

Abstract
This paper reviews the book "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou. The paper states that, in her book, Maya Angelou captures the essence of the difficulties faced by growing children in their passage from childhood, to adolescence and then on to adulthood. The author examines and discusses the early life of Maya Angelou following her experiences with racism and white culture, her experience as a single mother and how these experiences influenced her development.

From the Paper
"For the first part of her and Bailey's life, they live in ignorance about their real parents who abandoned them, with only the wild fantasies that they make up about their mother and father sustaining them. They blindly come to the conclusion that they had done something wrong for their parents to abandon them; the first blow to their self-esteem. This ignorance influences Bailey's choices in growing up, as Angelou explains that his maintaining of a tough, gangster-like exterior is a subconscious effort to win Mother's approval. The ignorance caused by this abandonment also plants a seed of insecurity in Maya in her childhood, bringing her to constantly question where her place of belonging is and who to trust as a parent figure. The role of the parent is compromised in her early life and so that seed of insecurity continues to grow inside of Maya. As a vine needs a pillar to grow on, so a youth needs a reliable caregiver to provide love, and stability, as well as an example to follow."

Tags:racism, unmarried, mother, sexual, identity, identity, negro

Abstract
This paper explains that, examining Maya Angelou's life, the base step of Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, physiological, was essential to her survival; she worked a variety of jobs and worked hard to ensure that she had whatever she needed. The author points out that Angelou describes the moment when self-respect and self-esteem were realized in her first book, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings". The paper relates that the top of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, self-actualization, is apparent, throughout Maya Angelou's life, in her ability to be creative as a singer, writer, actress, producer, and director.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Biography
Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and Maya Angelou's Life
Physiological
Safety
Love
Esteem
Self-Actualization
Summary and Conclusion

From the Paper
"As we mentioned earlier in our discussion Angelou has taught at a number of colleges and universities throughout the world. Most notably she was appointed the first Reynold's Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University; this is a lifetime appointment. She also served as the Writer in Residence at the University of Kansas in Lawrence in 1970. Angelou was also a distinguished visiting professor at Wichita State University and California State University of Sacramento in 1974. She also served on the Board of Governors at the University of North Carolina in 1998. In addition, Angelou taught modern dance at the Rome Opera House and the Habima Theatre in Tel Aviv."

Tags:physiological, safety, love, esteem, self-actualization

Abstract
This paper introduces the author Maya Angelou and some of her most important works. It discusses how Maya Angelou has been an inspiration to writers, women, and blacks ever since she began writing and how her career has spanned decades and shows no signs of slowing down. It evaluates how each of Angelou's works is not only a story of her own life; it is the story of anyone growing up black in America. It shows how Angelou takes difficult circumstances and creates a full and satisfying life from them, showing what attitude and determination can do for a person.

From the Paper
"Each book is a stepping-stone through her life, and each successive book to "Caged Bird" is no exception. As she learns more about herself, she becomes more completely a woman, and more comfortable with herself. By the time her fourth book came out, America and the world was familiar with the young Black woman trying to make her way in the world. "The Heart of a Woman" covers a pivotal time in American history, the late 50s, and early 60s, when race became a national and extremely volatile issue. This is her most political book, and gives readers an idea of her beliefs, and what led her to leave the United States. "I disagreed. Black people could never be like whites. We were different. More respectful, more merciful, more spiritual" (Angelou 172)."

Tags:caged, bird, blacks, south

Abstract
This paper examines how the life and work of Maya Angelou are fully intertwined and how the poetic adventure of her life, her personal odyssey, is a true representation of all Americans of African decent. It looks at how throughout her life and work, Maya Angelou has triumphantly created and re-created the self, endowing her life story with sympathetic tone and symbolic significance. It discusses her life from her birth as Marguerite Johnson on April 4, 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri through her career as a dancer and writer. It also reviews her most famous autobiographical work, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."

From the Paper
"Angelou's dysfunctional childhood enabled her to struggle with maturity and therefore became determined to prove she was a girl/woman of character and strength. The patterns established in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings continue in Angelou's other books, which encompass her life. They include Gather Together in My Name (1974); Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas (1976); The Heart of a Woman (1981); and All God's Children Need Walking Shoes (1986). But it is solely in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings that Angelou instills the essence of her autobiographical impulse and turns it into lyric imagery touched by the everlasting realism of truth."

Tags:african, american, caged, bird, blacks

Abstract
This paper examines the book "Maya Conquistador" by Matthew Restall which looks at the invasion of the Yucatan peninsula from the point of view of late sixteenth to early nineteenth century writings of the "conquered" Mayan. It examines how Restall's translations of Mayan accounts as well as his examination of Spanish rule offer his reader a new way of thinking about the victory with some larger issues of colonialism and how the book provides a unique understanding of the Mayan viewpoint on their history, their rulers and their sense of identity.

From the Paper
"This compilation of firsthand Mayan notes represents another point of view by enlightening a tale of adaptation and endurance, where the Mayan perspective comes up from an individuality based on strong loyalty of class, family, as well as community by telling the Spanish colonization of the Yucatan peninsula (Reviews). Whereas, the common understanding of the Spanish Conquest was that of foreign defeaters instantly destroying native populations and taking up their culture (Reviews)."

Tags:yucatan, peninsula, conquest, foreigners, class, culture

Abstract
Whatever we see around us is believed to be an illusion, called by the philosophers as the "Veil of Maya". This paper examines the philosophies of reality in the world, focusing on the works of Aristotle and Plato. The conception of Maya is that whatever we can see, feel, hear sense through our five senses is not the only "reality" of world and that the reality is far beyond what our senses can actually experience.

From the Paper
"Concepts and ideologies, such as the "Veil of Maya", have tried to declare the philosophical interpretation of the "reality" of the world. These conceptions are helpful in analyzing the importance of our senses and to assess the belief that whatever we observe is not all reality but there is something beyond that apparent reality. Philosophers like Plato and Aristotle have developed their own theories relating to the reality of the world and which gives us the necessary knowledge to judge our senses as a means to observe the outer world. Plato has defined the objective world as an illusion and relates to objective appearances, which we call objects, things etc, as illusionary objects. His classical example of slaves staring at shadows can best define his conception of objects and things. According to him, the real world objects that we term as things or physical body are nothing more than shadows and those who limit their perception to these "shadows" are separating themselves from reality. Hence, Plato's philosophy of real world implies that whatever we experience in our daily lives, through our senses, is in fact an illusion and the reality is something beyond that illusion. "

Tags:reality, world, sense, illusion, physical, perception, metaphysics, time, vision

Abstract
This paper discusses the anthropological book "The Maya," by Michael D. Coe which presents a detailed analysis of the Mayan people who survive to this day in the area of Central America and a small part of Southern Mexico. The author appreciates Coe's style as he moves the civilization through time and includes drawing of the people's pottery and craftware, which clearly illustrates their cultural growth. The author feels that the ending was a major letdown because the book just seemed to end at a point where much more could have been said.

From the Paper
"Reading this book makes the reader extremely aware of the many details of culture that can be discovered by looking at the results of an archeological dig. Because of the findings, scientists know the Mayas kept dogs and bees, hunted wild animals near their homes, fished, (included the ways they fished), and grew many crops, including corn, beans, and squash. They also know they produced salt, and traded a variety of other goods (Coe 140-141). It is amazing to think all this information rests beneath the ground, and it can be found relatively easily once a particular archeological area is discovered and established. It cannot help but make the reader wonder what our civilization is leaving behind, and what future archeologists will think about our own civilization."

Tags:mexico, pottery, illustrations, craftware, trade