Graduation, an Article by Maya Angelou, is a self-portrait of her 8th grade graduation from an all-Negro school in Arkansas in the 1940’s during the segregated era of America. Maya a 12 year old who looked forward to her life and was excited seeing all the plans and activities going on during graduation “The whole young population had come down with graduation epidemic. Large classes were graduating from both the grammar school and the high school. Even those who were year removed from their own day of glorious release were anxious to help with preparations.” (74). Donleavy, guest speaker, for the graduation walked onto the stage and he spoke about how the white school was receiving new equipment as well as receiving teachers from esteemed …show more content…
“ Bailey was obviously always going to be too small to be an athlete, so which concrete angle glued to what county seat had decided that if my brother wanted to be a lawyer he had to first pay penance for his skin by picking cotton and hoeing corn and studying correspondence books at night for twenty year?” (83). After the speech Maya wished that every human being should die and make a flesh pyramid with the white people on the bottom and the Negros on the top but it was her way of wishing that the Negros would be on top instead of the bottom being crushed by the white folks. “A pyramid of flesh with the white-folks on the bottom, as the broad base, then the Indians with their silly tomahawks and teepees and wigwams and treaties, the Negroes with their mops and recipes and cotton sacks and spirituals sticking out of their mouths… As a species, we were an abomination. All of us.” (83-84). It was time for Henry Reed, the valedictorian of their class, to give his speech which he ended by turning towards the graduating class and began singing the Negro national anthem, which made her forget about what Donleavy words about having no future and instead thinking they could do anything if they worked hard enough.” But I personally never heard the words, despite the thousands of times I ad sung
In her essay, “Momma, the Dentist, and me” Maya Angelou describe her insight in remembering an incident of racism. The incident refer to a time when a white dentist named Lincoln did not treat her tooth ace just for being colored “Niggah.” In America no one should be allowed to be a form of prisoner, because of their native skin color. Americans should be held accountable for their actions whenever a color person are in need of help their social life. There should be laws ordinances to prohibit persons from confronting -either verbally or physically -color people for not being a Caucasian person. This conflict in rights between those held by color people and the American people those held by, because American refused freedom rights, endanger lives, and economic issues.
"I was no longer simply a member of the graduating class of 1940; I was a proud member of the wonderful, beautiful Negro race" (841).
"The two races have lived here together. The Negro has been here in America since 1619, a total of 344 years. He is not going anywhere else; this country is his home. He wants to do his part to help make his city, state, and nation a better place for everyone, regardless of color and race. Let me appeal to the consciences of many silent, responsible citizens of the white community who know that a victory for democracy in Jackson will be a victory for democracy everywhere” (Medgar Evers in Jackson Mississippi, 2013). This excerpt is taken from a 17 minute speech by Medgar Evers on May 20, 1963, in response to the vocal criticisms of Mayor Allen Thompson’s view of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as being ‘outside agitators’.
Throughout life we go through many stepping stones, Maya Angelou's autobiographical essay "Graduation", was about more than just moving on to another grade. The unexpected events that occurred during the ceremony enabled her to graduate from the views of a child to the more experienced and sometimes disenchanting views of an adult. Upon reading the story there is an initial feeling of excitement and hope which was quickly tarnished with the abrupt awareness of human prejudices. The author vividly illustrates a rainbow of significant mood changes she undergoes throughout the story.
In her eulogy for Coretta Scott King, Maya Angelou uses figurative language and repetition to compel the audience to follow King’s example of peaceful yet strong advocacy of human rights.
“Dr. Angelou experienced the brutality of racial discrimination, but she also absorbed the unshakable faith and values of traditional African-American family, community, and culture”(www.mayaangelou.com, 2014).
As a black woman in the 1930's and the 1940's, little power or ever respect was given. There had been no civil rights movement and Jim Crow laws and segregation were still in effect. Blacks, in general, especially women, were not given a felicitous education because it was illegal to acquire or obtain books during that time period. Maya Angelou's autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, was deeply shaped of her coming of age during the depression that caused her separation, the racism and discrimination she experienced living in the south, and the abuse she endured which formed her discernment of men.
In her autobiography, Maya Angelou tells the story of her coming into womanhood in the American South during the 1930s. She begins with the story of an incident she had on Easter Sunday in which she’s in church reciting a poem in front of everyone; however, she messes up leaving her unable to finish the poem, so she runs out of the church crying and wets herself. Growing up her parents had a rough marriage, and eventually they got a divorce when Maya was only 3 years old. Their parents send her and her older brother Bailey to live with their grandmother Mrs. Annie Henderson in Staples, Arkansas. Staples is a very rural area and their grandmother owns the only store in the black section of the town, so she is very respected amongst the people
Throughout life graduation, or the advancement to the next distinct level of growth, is sometimes acknowledged with the pomp and circumstance of the grand commencement ceremony, but many times the graduation is as whisper soft and natural as taking a breath. In the moving autobiographical essay, "The Graduation," Maya Angelou effectively applies three rhetorical strategies - an expressive voice, illustrative comparison and contrast, and flowing sentences bursting with vivid simile and delightful imagery - to examine the personal growth of humans caught in the adversity of racial discrimination.
In 1951, Langston Hughes wrote “Theme for English B” using the persona of a 22-year old African American who had come to New York City as part of the post-World War II Great Migration. The set up for the poem is deceptively simple: the English professor has given the students an autobiographical assignment in jaunty rhyme, “Go home and write/ a page tonight” (2-3). Everybody has done assignments like this, and from a position of privilege, the teacher assumes that the students will easily be able to fulfill the work comfortably. This reminded me strongly of other assignments that weren’t so easy for students and put them on the spot, like asking a classmate to do a family tree when they were adopted from another country, or asking someone who is a religious minority to stand up and talk about their holiday traditions.
Maya Angelou is an author and poet who has risen to fame for her emotionally filled novels and her deep, heartfelt poetry. Her novels mainly focus on her life and humanity with special emphasis on her ideas of what it means to live. The way she utilizes many different styles to grab and keep readers’ attention through something as simple as an autobiography is astounding. This command of the English language and the grace with which she writes allows for a pleasant reading experience. Her style is especially prominent in "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", where the early events of Angelou’s life are vividly described to the reader in the postmodern literary fashion.
In her first autobiography, Maya Angelou tells about her childhood through her graduation through, “Graduation”, from “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” when she is about to graduate. She starts as an excited graduate because she was finally going to receive her diploma, a reward for all her academic accomplishments. On the day of her graduation finally comes, that happiness turns into doubt about her future as she believes that black people will be nothing more than potential athletes or servants to white people. It wasn’t until Henry Reed started to sing the Negro National Anthem that she felt on top of the world again. Throughout her graduation she felt excited to disappointed, until Henry Reed sang and made her feel better.
Before collage, Toni went to all integrated schools. In elementary school, Toni was the only person in her class that could read (2). Because she attended all intergraded schools, she was friends with many of her white school mates and didn’t encounter discrimination until she started dating (1). She was very dedicated to her...
In the poem Still I Rise by Maya Angelou, the speaker directly addresses the reader as she explains the challenges and oppression she and other African Americans have faced both in history and in present day. Throughout the poem, the speaker sassily and persistently declares that she will “rise” regardless of the racism and sexism that attempt to prevent her from being successful. The concept of “rising” essentially means that the author is “rising above” persecution in order to fulfill her own goals that break the societal boundaries confining her. This poem has several significant patterns that help the reader understand the author’s emotions and overall message. Maya Angelou’s consistent use of refrains, rhetorical questions, and profound imagery together capture her frustration with
It is said that when we look in the mirror, we see our reflection; but what is it that we really see? Some people look through the glass and see a totally different person. All across the world identity is an issue that many women have. Woman today must be skinny, tall, thick, fair skinned and have long hair in order to be considered beautiful. Maya Angelou feels otherwise, as she gives women another way to look at themselves through her poem "Phenomenal Woman".