Vivian Baxter Quotes

In “I know Why the Caged Bird Sings” Maya Angelou writes about her life from the ages 3 to 16 years old. Angelou writes about her experiences with her mom in part of her autobiography. Vivian Baxter, Angelou’s mother, despite not being there for most of her childhood, she is a major influence to Angelou. Vivian is a young woman who works hard and learns from her life experiences. Vivian Baxter is a strong resilient individual because she has insight, that prevents her from making brash decisions, independence, which allows her to do what is best for her, initiative, that makes her strong and confident, and morality, that lets her know right from wrong.
Vivian’s morality is showcased when Maya gets pregnant. She does not throw Maya out or shame her for having a child out of wedlock. Instead, Vivian helped Maya during her pregnancy and assured Maya that she is capable of being a parent. When Vivian was enlightened about her pregnancy, she asked Maya whether the father of the child and she wanted to marry each other. When Maya responded with, “No”, Vivian
It can be argued that she sent them away because she was too careless to take care of them but on the contrary, she made the best choice for her children. Vivian’s insight let her know her situation. She was a young mother, who recently separated with the father, that had to support herself and her two children. She decided to send them to their grandmother because she knew that the children would be taken better care of there. After the rape incident, Maya would not talk to anyone but her brother. She and her brother were eventually sent back to their grandmother again. This shows Vivian’s insight again because she knows that Maya wasn’t going to suddenly alter her behavior in St. Louis. She decided to send them back to give Maya a sense of change. Vivian’s insight gives her the ability to look out for her