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Critical analysis of maya angelou
Critical analysis of maya angelou
Critical analysis of maya angelou
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Maya Angelou fits the hero archetype, and she did it in her own way. She had faced a myriad of hardships, torment, and racial oppression, yet she still remained steadfast through her childhood ordeals of growing up black in the South. Her autobiography discloses these adolescent uphill battles in detail; including how racism in the South overtook her life in most aspects.
Many scholars say the people you surround yourself with as a child, shape who you become as an adult. Angelou’s Grandmother took a huge role in shaping Angelou’s future. By making them stay clean Momma gave them pride in cleanliness and health, it also gave them purpose and to rise above stereotypes and people who put you down. The way Momma handled the group of unruly girls, calling them ‘Miz’, speak calmly, and then continuing her work while humming, showed Angelou that anger, violence, and resentment were not the proper way to handle a difficult situation. Momma’s victory and the lessons she taught to Angelou, ultimately, helped Angelou become a success in her adult life.
It appears Maya Angelou could answer the timeless question what does it mean to be a women?” She shows her confidence and pride in her identity as a women in the poem “Phenomenal Woman” that I found on the internet. She says,
A poet, an author, a play-write, an actress, a mother, a civil-rights activists, historian and most important a survivor. Perhaps Maya Angelou, award winning author of many books, is one of the most influential African Americans in American history. I believe that she rates at the top of the list of American authors, with Hemingway, Hawthorne, and Voight. I believe through my research and reading of Maya Angelou that she should be among the members of The American Authors Hall of Fame. Maya was born on, April 4th, 1928 as Marguerite Johnson, in St. Louis Missouri. She was raised in Stamps Arkansas, by her Grandmother Annie Henderson and Her Uncle Willie. Stamps was a rural segregated community. However, it was tight knit between the African Americans. Maya grew up during a very difficult time period in American history. They were just recovering from the Great Depression, and learning how to deal with different races of people. Maya knew this and made it clear in her writing. "It was awful to be Negro and have no control over my life. It was brutal to be young and already trained to sit quietly and listen to charges brought against my color with no chance of defense. We should be dead. I thought I should like to see us all dead, one on top of each other. A pyramid of flesh with the whit folks on the bottom, . . . and then the Negro's." (Angelou Caged Bird 153) "If growing up was painful for the Southern Black Girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat." (Angelou, Caged Bird)
Maya Angelou once said “All great achievements require time.”. This has been proven time and time and time again, even in Angelou's own life was example of this. Maya had a hard childhood but she keeped working hard and never gave up, this helped become a civil rights activist, poet, author, and screenwriter. (Maya Angelou Biography)
As Maya Angelou, a civil rights activist, memoirist, and American poet, once said, “I think a hero is any person really intent on making this a better place for all people”. There are myriad of traits that a hero possesses, but one trait that differentiates a civilian from a hero is altruism; it is defined as the “unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others” by Merriam-Webster. There are scads of heroes who possess benevolence such as Odysseus, Harriet Tubman, Clara Barton, and Cesar Chavez. Odysseus is an epic hero in Homer’s Odyssey, Harriet Tubman is known for freeing hundreds of slaves from their masters, Clara Barton had nursed wounded soldiers, and Cesar Chavez had protested the injustice farm workers faced. Altruism is the fundamental trait that deems a person to be considered heroic for it is displayed by all heroes and is the foremost reason for a hero’s actions to aid others.
Maya Angelou once remarked that “a hero is any person really intent on making this a better place for all people.” Diverse answers may result from the question: "what is a hero?" depending on whom one asks. I believe a hero inspires through their phenomenal precedents and benevolent behaviors while possessing qualities not ordinarily seen in our culture. Angelou aspired to convey that kindness and heroism are not mutually exclusive, but rather fit together effectively to produce the heroes held in high regard in our society today. No matter what one might admire about a certain hero-- bravery, patience, or strength-- kindness lacks not in these traits, but rather encompasses them. For why would a hero act with bravery, patience, or strength
A long time ago I believe it was on April 4, 1928 when my best friend Maya was born. Maya and I lived in the town of Stamps, Arkansas with her grandmother due to the divorce of her parents. During these awful years at the age of 7 Maya went to visit her grandmother when she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. After this due to the hatred her uncle killed her mother’s boyfriend. She became so traumatized by all of this that she even stopped talking. During this time Maya and I became great friends for you see Maya loved to write and well I was her tool the one object that made her happy as you may already know I am a pencil her best friend. She had a tough childhood but she never gave up she had me. I remember on her most hard nights she would grasp me and write out all her feelings and emotions was her escape and it’s just amazing to know how much you have helped a person. Also where we lived in Stamps, Arkansas was hard because Stamps was a rural and segregated environment. It’s really tough living somewhere where you are not treated equally. She never let go of me I was that person that was there throughout all her struggles during some of the toughest years in her life. I still remember the day she started to write her autobiography with is really known now a days t is called “I know why the caged bird sings” which talks about how her life has been since she was small all the way to the age of 16.Also at the age of 16 I remember when this little boy arrived he just cried and cried I wish I could help him just as I helped Maya but well he was a baby boy Mayas baby boy named Guy. During these times “I know why the caged bird sings” became very popular actually one of the best sellers. Maya and I have ...
As I was reading through the story “Champion of the World” by Maya Angelou (written in 1959) I noticed that the author uses many different techniques like sentence structure, pathos, and logos to show and tell what she supports.
A mother, an actress, an author, a poet, a civil rights activist, and more importantly, a survivor. It takes a strong woman to be a phenomenal woman. Maya Angelou was the second born child of Bailey and Vivian Johnson. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri as Marguerite Johnson on the fourth of April in 1928, although she and her brother, Bailey Jr., for the most part, grew up with their grandmother in Arkansas (Hagan). Angelou got her nickname “Maya” because her brother Bailey never called her Marguerite, instead called her “Mya Sister” which eventually lead to the nickname Maya, which has stuck ever since. Angelou had a rough childhood in the beginning, she bounced around between
According to the Huffington Post, self-image has affected over 60% of social media users (Silva 1). Self-image is the way that one perceives themselves based off of what is happening in his life at a given time. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou tells the story of a young Maya Angelou and her coming of age. Although there was not social media when Maya Angelou was young, the outside world was able to affect her self-image. Her book gives great insight into her life, including the terrible parts, such as the heavy racism in Maya’s hometown, Stamps, the effects of her rape, and her struggling sexuality. Maya’s self-image significantly changes because of these factors in a way that she can never
Life often deals many cards. Sometimes they are manageable and others times they seem unbearable. Upon analyzing these “cards” dealt, we decide whether we are capable of taking them on, or if we crumble under pressure. Maya Angelou was an individual that used all her circumstances, whether good or bad, to her advantage which allowed her to excel in life. Because of her persistence, she is acknowledged as one of the greatest influences in African American literature.
Only an awe-inspiring poet evokes the deepest, darkest emotions in her audience. She entangles the reader to believe, imagine, and desire and feel whatsoever emotion and experience she chooses to portray. Maya Angelou does exactly that in her poem Phenomenal Woman. Angelou mocks the societal view of the ideal woman and drags many different types of audiences into her confident and majestic principles for being a woman, of being who she really is. Angelou uses various types of figurative language to express and illustrate her opinion of the phenomenal woman she is and of the phenomenal person anyone can be. By doing so, she “lampoons the conceived notions of beauty” and finds contentment in herself as the woman she is (source #1). Her use of metaphors, refrain, and alliteration to portray the “unflinching confidence about
Talking about things that go wrong, Maya Angelou said to say thank you. Why? Because when things don't work out, something better is on the road for you! I have seen this time and time again in my
Maya Angelou experienced a life-changing event at the vulnerable age of eight: her mother’s boyfriend raped her. As a result, she chose to be mute for five years due to the emotional trauma this caused. Soon, a family friend named Mrs. Flowers, a wealthy and intellectual woman from Stamps, Arkansas where her grandmother resided, read with Angelou and helped Maya to express herself through writing. Mrs. Flowers taught Maya “words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with meaning“ (qtd. in Nelson). Eventually these poems helped Angelou to find the courage to speak again. Maya Angelou’s poetry contains bold messages and gives a voice to individuals who, at times, do not have the courage or ability to speak for themselves. As critic Harold Bloom aptly comments, Angelou’s literary techniques “enhance the capacity of her poetry to heal, liberate, and empower her readers” (Bloom’s Modern Critical Views: Maya Angelou 130). This idea of empowerment is especially evident in Angelou’s three poems “Still I Rise,” “Phenomenal Woman,” and “A Kind of Love Some Say.”
There is another type of hero that almost no one is aware of. In the poorest areas of the country, live mostly minorities and other ethic background. All their lives they’ve been expected to work harder and expected not succeed in life. Some individuals living in poverty with a determination to succeed work hard all of their lives to become what everybody doubted they could. Escaping the crime, drugs, and prostitution is enough to escape hell, even if they don’t go to college. Despite of their financial problems, drug and crime surroundings, or difficulties in the language skills, their desire to triumph fuels their persistence. Those who make it to success are the few living examples of the purest form of hero anyone can be. They are not only their own heroes but also the heroes of the poor children who dream of becoming like them someday.