Maya Angelou Still I Rise

Maya Angelou, a presence in United States society, has risen against formidable odds. After being raped at age eight and after withdrawing for a couple years, with the help and inspiration of a grade school teacher, Angelou rose to revert herself. Eventually, she became the first African-American street car conductors in San Francisco. She traveled to Africa and asserted herself in dance. Despite the shortening of a brief marriage, Angelou continued to assert herself, drawing inspiration as the mother of her son. Her presentation to the American public-at-large happened with the publication of her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The purpose of this research is to focus on the poem, "Still I Rise" to analyze the significance of Angelou's twofold strategy: the impact of the question she poses to the public; and her assertion of her heritage as a foundation for her perpetual advancement. The impact of the question that she poses to the public can be applied in two ways. The first way that Angelou used it was as a woman, for instance she wrote, "Does my sexiness upset you?", and in a stanza prior to that, she wrote, "Does
The three middle stanzas basically were Angelou saying that she did, she can, and she will overcome whatever adversity she was faced with. In a way she taunted the reader, by saying something similar to, "You thought I couldn't do it, but look at me now!", then she asked if her level of pride was offensive, and then went on to say that she didn't care if it was. After all the teasing and taunting, Angelou said that you can try to hurt in any way you desire but she will still overcome