Maya Angelou Despotism

Maya Angelou’s use of symbolism in the book is used to describe her displacement in society and how difficult it is to find self-identity, revealing the form of being a “Caged bird.” Maya is a caged bird because she is aware of the displacement of blacks in America and the entitlement and freedom of whites. “if growing up is as painful for the southern girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat” (Angelou 4). Angelou is aware because of the color of her skin, she is living in a society that does not want her or anyone who looks like her. With her awareness Angelou, “...escapes stasis to become a subject in the perpetual process of forming and emerging. It is a dynamic subjectivity that emerges out

Maya Angelou is a leader by example, she sets the standard by her actions and the stories she tells teaches the audience a lesson. Majority of her work is to inform us of the past and she wants us to learn from her experiences in life; she is a life teacher. The purpose of this poem was to inform us of the history of our country. The poem is titled “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” and her purpose of writing this is to teach the reader why the caged bird sings. Maya Angelou wants to put the reader in her shoes to get the ultimate experience of racial inequality but instead by taking the role of a caged bird or a free bird.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce, discuss, and analyze the novel I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. Specifically it will discuss the themes of racism and segregation, and how these strong themes are woven throughout this moving autobiography. Maya Angelou recounts the story of her early life, including the racism and segregation she experiences throughout her formative years. With wit, sincerity, and remarkable talent, Angelou portrays racism as a product of ignorance and prejudice. However, she finds the strength to rise above this crippling condition.

After reading the first two stanzas of the poem Caged Bird by Maya Angelou, in which the free bird is compared to the caged bird, it immediately evoked thoughts of the struggle of African Americans compared to the lifestyle of white Americans. I think Angelou uses metaphors and juxtaposition pointedly in her poem to convey the idea that the freedom of the free bird is a natural state of living and the knowledge the caged bird has of that life can not be undone by any amount of oppression, entrapment or limitation of opportunity. A line that is repeated twice in the poem is, “The caged bird sings a fearful trill, of things unknown but longed for still”. The caged bird continues to sing of freedom in spite of his imprisonment because he knows of freedom and desires to feel what it is like to be the free bird. Angelou shows that in her opinion that desire will always be expressed despite scary circumstances that might quell the spirit such as being trapped in the cage.

Deep in the forest of Frederick Douglass’s autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, the caged bird sings on. The singing slaves in Douglass’s narrative are the caged birds of Maya Angelou’s famous poem, filling the air around them with desire: desire for a freedom so far out of reach—for “things unknown but longed for still.”

Perhaps the reason that Maya’s poetry has had such a lasting impact on Americans is because of her poems such as ‘Caged Birds’ and ‘Still I Rise’ that demonstrate the issues that African – Americans faced, which she has done through the power of her words. She also challenges the readers with the theme of oppression that is carried out through her pomes as she felt very strongly about it by being surrounded by it her entire life. Maya Angelou has left an everlasting mark by influencing the society through her poems by inspiring others to persist towards their goals and dreams with strength and pride. Overall, Maya Angelou’s work can be attributed to the fact that her personal and cultural experiences of power have not been forgotten by overcoming adversity and oppression, which is clearly reflected in her inspiration body of work seen

In Maya Angelou’s poem, “Caged Bird”, She explains how a bird is trapped inside of a cage and can not escape from thick metal bars that hold it back. It imagines and signs of having freedom. People believe this is about a bird, but what if it isn’t. I believe that this is talking about a person who can’t make the decision if they want to keep fighting to do free.The bird can’t decide if it wants to fight to soon wear the bars of the cage down so it can finally fly away aswell or to give up and use its voice and

“I think that a hero is any person really intent on making this a better place for all people.” -Maya Angelou. Over the course of time, heroes have taken different shapes and represented the different ideals of their era. However, all heroes have the same passion at heart, which is voiced perfectly by Maya Angelou’s quote. A modern hero can represent all different qualities, but two traits that will always be staples in the making of a modern hero are honesty and bravery.

Maya Angelou’s debut autobiography is an article of literature that depicts the life of a young black girl growing up in a world pitted against her, and the resilience she found in herself in order to survive. Angelou is a voice that is not often heard. In a world dominated by a white male narrative, the plights of the minority are often overshadowed. Thus, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an imperative novel as it articulates the life of not only Angelou, but also of the unique experiences that black women in the Jim Crow era faced.

On other hand, the caged bird’s “stands on the grave of dreams, his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream, his wings are clipped and his feet are tied”, symbolising the oppression and represents the the African-American community. The bird has extremely limited freedom because of the locked cage and constantly longs to be free. The caged bird cannot escape and this symbolises the segregation and discrimination that Angelou grew up

In "Caged Bird", the author, Maya Angelou, communicates the numerous oppressions that African Americans faced for centuries, such as enslavement and racism. Angelou uses the lives of two very dissimilar birds to captivate her audience regarding this topic. Through the incorporation of metaphors, end rhymes, and personifications, Angelou explains the tyranny that the African race experienced since the moment they set foot on the 13 colonies.

Within this poem the two opposing birds each symbolise an oppressing issue; segregation. The caged bird sings of freedom, clipped wings and tied feet, refers to the African Americans and their repression due to inequalities. With the writings from an African American woman, the cage is also symbolic, referring to sexism and misogyny- issues predominately present throughout her time. The first stanza, lines 1-7 relates to nature, referring to a ‘free bird’ throughout her poem. She describes this bird as free through the use of actions commonly seen.

Maya Angelou is a poet who fights for equality, questions the ways people are treated and shapes the world so that everyone have equal chances in life. “I know why the caged bird sings” and “Still I rise” are two of well known poems that highlight the inequality in our lives which takes a focus on racism. “Still I rise” displays the oppression of females created from our sociality. “I know why the cage bird sings” shows the result of oppression which is the loss of freedom.

The poem “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou tells the story of two birds: one bird has the luxury of freedom and the second bird lives its life caged and maltreated by an unknown tyrant. Maya Angelou wrote this poem during the Civil Rights Era, the period when black activists in the 1950’s and 1960’s fought for desegregation of African Americans. This poem parallels the oppression that African Americans were fighting during this time period. In “Caged Bird”, Angelou builds a strong contrast that shows the historical context of discrimination and segregation through the use of mood, symbolism, and theme.

In this poem Maya Angelou talks about the civil rights movement. She also express her personal life of what she went through such as being raped at the age of 6 by her mother’s boyfriend and also becoming mute for 5 years. She also states how she got pregnant and had to raise a child at 16. All these events led up to writing this poem from a caged bird that sings point of view.