Maya Angelou Biography

Maya Angelou: “Caged Bird”

Biography:

April 4th of 1928, in the town of St. Louis, Missouri, was when the life of Margeurite Annie Johnson began (“Maya Angelou,” Biography.com). The name that she later adopted, Maya Angelou, is derived from her childhood name, “My,” as called by her older brother, combined with a shortened version of her ex-husband’s surname of Angelopulos (Academy of Achievement). Angelou was born to Bailey and Vivian Johnson, who split when she was only three years old, thus bombarding her with a rather discombobulated childhood spent with her brother and grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas (Burt and Curtright). In Stamps was where Angelou faced major racial discrimination, which was unfortunately commonplace in the Southern

Her adroit abilities enabled her to produce compositions branching off of discrete literary areas, such as singing, dancing, acting, directing, and writing. Georgia, Georgia (1972), is a film written and composed by her (Academy of Achievement). Mrs. Flowers: A Moment of Friendship (1986) is a book written by Angelou regarding her friendship with the woman who encouraged her to speak again (“Maya Angelou,” Poetry Foundation). Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry like Christmas (1976) is one of Angelou’s other autobiographies besides her most recognized one: 1969’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, which became the first nonfiction best-seller by an African-American woman (“Maya Angelou,” Biography.com). I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings chronicles the childhood of Maya Angelou, ending with the birth of her son, Guy, and it was nominated for a National Book Award after winning immediate success (“Maya Angelou,” Poetry Foundation). Angelou’s literary impact resulted in her receiving of over 50 honorary degrees including two NAACP Image Awards, the National Medal of Arts by President Bill Clinton, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2010 by President Barack Obama (“Maya Angelou,” Poetry Foundation). In 2013, Angelou received the Literarian Award for her contributions to the literary community (“Maya Angelou,” Poetry Foundation). Overall, her works contain messages encircling her struggles with firsthand racial prejudice, her experience of being sexually abused, faith, violence, black beauty, the strength of women, the human spirit, and social justice, which are all powerful topics accompanied by Angelou’s powerful words (“Maya Angelou,” Poetry