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Critical analysis of maya angelou
Critical analysis of maya angelou
Critical analysis of maya angelou
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"The Graduation" is a chapter from Maya Angelou's autobiography, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings". In general, it centers on Angelou's eighth-grade graduation in Stamps, Arkansas. Occurring in the racially segregated South, Angelou explains her experience graduating from the blacks-only grammar school and describes the contrast between the black and white schools. By examining Angelou as an author, exploring the context in which the author wrote, and considering the fundamental message she conveys through this essay, the audience becomes aware of the theme that shows how through perseverance, hard work, and hope, one can overcome the obstacles of racism and prejudice and new sources of strength within. Dr. Angelou is known as one of the most outstanding voices of modern times. She is a famous poet, novelist, memoirist, educator, dramatist, actress, producer, filmmaker, historian, and civil rights activist. In this way, there is no reason not to trust the author with has such wide and multifaceted life experience. Through this and other her works, Angelou has provided a role model for other black women who struggle in order to support their children, while keeping a positive vision of life. As she reveals the problems and …show more content…
Angelou might have written this paper as a way to describe and retell her story on what multiple people can say is one of the most bittersweet moments of their lives. She is direct with the message of graduation being an important milestone, a happy time that should be cherished. She is successful at showing that even in the face of difficulty it is possible to push through it. She was indirectly summarizing the prejudices that African American’s faced during her time. A vital quote “We were on top again. Always, again. We survived. The depths had been icy and dark, but now a bright sun spoke to our souls”
This piece of autobiographical works is one of the greatest pieces of literature and will continue to inspire young and old black Americans to this day be cause of her hard and racially tense background is what produced an eloquent piece of work that feels at times more fiction than non fiction
In Maya Angelou's autobiographical novel, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", tender-hearted Marguerite Johnson, renamed Maya by her refined brother Bailey, discovers all of the splendors and agonies of growing up in a prejudiced, early twentieth century America. Rotating between the slow country life of Stamps, Arkansas and the fast-pace societies in St. Louis, Missouri and San Francisco, California taught Maya several random aspects of life while showing her segregated America from coast to coast.
In her narrative, titled “Champion of the World”, the nineteenth chapter of the novel I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou recalls an incident of a heavyweight boxing match between an African American, Joe Louis, and a white contender. Angelou emphasizes the import of the match to the African American community to display the racism in this time period, the oppression people of color face, and the defeat they have to come to terms with whether they lose in one aspect of life or not. To achieve her purpose, Angelou uses dialogue, diction, and the the imbedding of a secondary narrative throughout the primary narrative. She creates parallelism through the use of repetition and utilizes short, staccato sentences to further emphasises her
"Angelou, Maya (née Marguerite Annie Johnson)." Encyclopedia of African-american Writing. Amenia: Grey House Publishing, 2009. Credo Reference. Web. 12 March 2014.
The novel, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", by Maya Angelou is the first series of five autobiographical novels. This novel tells about her life in rural Stamps, Arkansas with her religious grandmother and St. Louis, Missouri, where her worldly and glamorous mother resides. At the age of three Maya and her four-year old brother, Bailey, are turned over to the care of their paternal grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas. Southern life in Stamps, Arkansas was filled with humiliation, violation, and displacement. These actions were exemplified for blacks by the fear of the Ku Klux Klan, racial separation of the town, and the many incidents in belittling blacks.
"Graduation" is an excerpt of the autobiographical book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, written by Maya Angelou. While the book is autobiographical in nature, this particular excerpt is much discussed amongst literary circles because of Angelou's use of both objective and subjective narration.
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 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.
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.
Walker, Pierre A. Racial protest, identity, words, and form in Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Vol. 22. West Chester: Collage Literature, n.d. Literary Reference Center. Web. 8 Apr. 2014. .
Inequality discrimination is an occurrence issue in the society. In Maya Angelou’s essay “Graduation,” she presents a form of discrimination based on how the African Americans were treated by whites; implying to short descriptions that she extends in her essay of racism and discrimination in her society was based on her school experience. Such as how they were not valued for their educational intelligence but only physically. For example, “Like travelers with exotic destinations on their minds, the graduates were remarkably forgettable…After tests were returned and grades given, the student body, which acted like an extended family, knew who did it well, who excelled, and what piteous ones had failed” ( Maya Angelou 21). This quote reflects on a class social preference. I believe Maya’s describes this as a disappointment and discrimination between those who has money to travel and willing workers. I personally admit that racism affects the society and everyone is equal and this quote signifies the unfairness they affront to in society. Such as American race having preferences for their race is not fair for others. As this quote stated that some professors gave changes to those who were high class by accepting their tardiness and late work just because of their race. This represents crucial unfair act. Same as the central school (white school) been established for “improvements”, a “well-known artist” was going to go to teach them about art, and other supplies in which makes them better because they have everything to be well known as an improvement great school as for Stamps school; Donleavy acknowledge that is possible for African American to learn successfully but they only lie in sports or service worker (Angelou 27). At this point, the man’s words were really offensive to African American race such as a mean discrimination and making them feel all their work is
Maya Angelou’s excerpt from her book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” reveals the challenges facing a young black girl in the south. The prologue of the book tells of a young Angelou in church trying to recite a poem she has forgotten. She describes the dress her grandmother has made her and imagines a day where she wakes up out of her black nightmare. Angelou was raised in a time where segregation and racism were prevalent in society. She uses repetition, diction, and themes to explore the struggle of a black girl while growing up. Angelou produces a feeling of compassion and poignancy within the reader by revealing racial stereotypes, appearance-related insecurities, and negative connotations associated with being a black girl. By doing this she forces the
James Baldwin, a famous writer at the time, was one of Angelou’s biggest influences. He urged Angelou to write about her life experiences(Bio.com). Her efforts resulted in the massively successful memoir about her childhood and young adult years, I know Why the Caged Bird Sings, which made literary history as the first nonfiction best seller by an African American woman. Inspired by Paul Laurence Dunbar’s poem “Sympathy,” Angelou contrasts the struggles of a bird attempting to rise above the limitations of adverse surroundings with the flight of a bird that is free. She seeks to create in the reader an emotional look towards the difficulty of the misused, captured creature—a symbol of victimized African Americans and their experiences(enotes.com).
“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).
The book thus explores a lot of important issues, such as: sexuality and race relations, and shows us how society violated her as a young African American female. In I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelou clearly expresses the physical pain of sexual assault, the mental anguish of not daring to tell, and her guilt and shame for having been raped. Her timidity and fear of telling magnify the brutality of the rape. For more than a year after the rape she lives in self-imposed silence, speaking only very rarely. This childhood rape reveals the pain that African American women suffered as victims not only of racism but also sexism.