Character Analysis of Annie Henderson in Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Character Analysis of Annie Henderson (Momma)

In Maya Angelou's autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the reader

is introduced to a vast ensemble of complex characters. Each character has a

tremendous impact on Maya Angelou's life. One character who not only has great

weight in Maya's life, but is also one of the most beloved and admired characters is

Annie Henderson, Maya's paternal grandmother. She is defined by an unshakable faith

in God, her loyalty to her community, and a deep love for everything she touches. Annie

Henderson, affectionately referred to as Momma, has the greatest influence over Maya

Angelou, from childhood to adolescence.

Momma lives in Stamps, Arkansas, where she is dearly loved and respected by its

residents. She is the proprietor of the only general store, the Wm. Johnson General

Merchandise Store, in the black community. Momma has a strong entrepreneurial spirit.

She has owned this store for some twenty-five years, starting it as a mobile lunch center

and eventually building it in the heart of the black community. She lives in the back of

the store with her handicapped son, Uncle Willie. Maya and her older brother, Bailey Jr.,

go to live with Momma when they were three and four years old. Momma excepts them

into her home with open arms and raises them for the majority of their childhood.

Momma instills in them a sense of right and wrong and raises the children according to

stern Christian values.

One thing that makes Momma an important character is her unshakeable faith in

God. Every morning Momma rises from bed (without an alarm clock) at four o'clock

and starts her day with a prayer, asking for God to bless her home and everyone in it.

When Momma is confronted with racism, she looks to God for guidance. An example of

this is when Momma and Maya were outside of the store on a fine day and they happened

to notice three poor white-trash children coming down the hill. Momma sends Maya into

the store to shield her from what would most certainly turn into an ugly situation.

Momma turned to stone and "did an excellent job of sagging from her waist down, but

from the waist up she seemed to be pulling from the top of the oak tree across the street"

and she began to moan a hymn. When the three children approached Momma, they

began to mock and torment her. Momma stood defiantly on her porch, giving no sign of

care, and continued moaning her hymn, while the children proceeded mocking her.

Finally the children tired and casually said their good-byes, disrespecting Momma further

by referring to her by her first name. Maya witnesses this scene from inside the store and

in the beginning was very angry, but when the charade was over, she felt pride in her

grandmother. She did not fully comprehend what happened, but she was certain that her

grandmother won the battle. This episode is the ultimate test on her faith in God because

no matter what happened, she never lost her faith and continued to love her enemies.

Another example that makes Momma an important character is her loyalty to her

community. When the Great Depression "seeped into the black community slowly, like a

thief with misgivings" Momma devised a plan that not only would help her business

flourish in the mist of this trying time, but also help out all those greatly affected by it.

She came up with the brilliant idea to allow her patrons to turn in their welfare provisions

in exchange for the goods that they were accustomed to before the Depression. She put

out a sign in front of her store proclaiming that "one-five pound can of powered milk is

worth fifty cents in trade, one-five pound can of powered eggs is worth one dollar in

trade, and ten-number two cans of mackerel is worth one dollar in trade." Not only did

she devise this plan but she also loaned money to many people, black and white. The

residents of the black community and Momma equally benefited from this system of

barter. The residents benefited by being allowed to obtain what they were accustomed to

from Mommas store and Momma benefited by being able to keep her store open while

most businesses were closing down.

Another example that makes Momma an important character is her deep love for

everything she touches. Despite the affection she feels for her grandchildren, she cares

more about their well being than her own needs. An example of the deep love that

Momma displays is when Maya needs to see a dentist because of a toothache. The only

black dentist in town is twenty-five miles away, so Momma decides to take Maya to Mr.

Lincoln, a white dentist she loaned money to during the Great Depression. Momma feels

that Mr. Lincoln owes her a favor. When they arrive to the office, Mr. Lincoln turns

them away, stating that he does not treat black patience. Momma reminds him of the

loan that saved his business and he reminds her that the loan has been repaid. He also

adds that he would rather "stick his hands in a dog's mouth" than treat Maya's infliction.

This infuriates Momma and she leaves Maya outside on the back porch, while Momma

lets herself into the office. While inside, Maya imagines her grandmother transforming

into a "superhero" and giving Mr. Lincoln a thrashing. In reality, Momma is inside the

office telling Mr. Lincoln that he has not paid the ten dollars in interest. Mr. Lincoln

protests, saying she never asked for interest before, but he ultimately pays the ten dollars

and issues a receipt to seal the deal. Momma uses this money to take Maya to a black

dentist that will treat her. Momma compromises her sense of ethics in order to obtain the

means to get her granddaughter treatment for her toothache. She realizes that it was

wrong for her to ask for interest on a loan retroactively but she felt it necessary to

sacrifice her ethics for the good of her granddaughter.

Although I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings has many complex characters, none

are as complex as Momma. She has a tremendous impact on Maya's life. Through

living by example, she instills in Maya an unshakeable sense of faith, loyalty to one's

community, and shows Maya how to have compassion for everything she touches.

Although Momma is stern in her values she conveys the colossal extent of her love for

Maya throughout the book.