Maya Angelou‚ named Marguerite Johnson by her mother‚ was born April 4‚ 1928 in St. Louis‚ Missouri (“Maya Angelou”). When she was three years old‚ she and her brother moved to Stamps‚ Arkansas with her grandmother because her parents divorced each other. Because of Stamps’ location in the racially divided South‚ she experienced both racism and a high level of cultural pride. She moved back in with her mother but was traumatized when her mother’s boyfriend molested and raped her. At the time‚ Angelou
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Aracelis Andino Professor Theresa Defranzo English 101 10/10/14 Poetry Assignment Maya Angelou: Maya Angelou was born on August 4‚ 1928‚ in St. Louis ‚ writer and civil rights activist is known for her 1969 memoir‚ I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings‚ which made literary history as the first nonfiction best-seller by an African-American woman. In 1971‚ Angelou published the Pulitzer Prize-nominated poetry collection Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’Fore I Die. She later wrote the poem "On the
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The poem “Phenomenal Woman” describes the spirit of womanhood. The poem describes a woman who is proud of being a woman‚ who is confident‚ follows her heart‚ has faith in herself and believes in her inner strength. Such a woman is ‘phenomenally phenomenal.’ The poet tells her readers to ignore the conventional view of being beautiful which is only related to physical appearance. Instead the poet asks us to feel proud of what God has endowed us with. Women should not succumb to the artificial canons
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Maya‚ a Poetic Angel Just one person can have an evident effect‚ good or bad‚ on the lives of many people. One person who has influenced the lives of millions is Maya Angelou‚ a world-renown African-American author and poet. She has battled with struggles such as racism‚ sexism‚ and prejudice all of her life. Angelou quotes‚ “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said‚ people will forget what you did‚ but people will never forget how you made them feel.” With her courage and determination
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Guarding our ecosystems- Marshlands and Wetlands In the last decade‚ the conservation of our ecosystem has gained high importance. The last few years have seen a considerable jump on awareness of the conservation of marshlands. Marshlands or wetlands are areas which are transitional between terrestrial and aquatic systems. Here the water is usually at the surface. The land is covered by stagnant water that does not exceed 6 meters. They are considered important as they are home to various species
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Maya Angelou was a black child living with her grandmother in the American south in the 1930’s. In her autobiography “I know why the caged bird sings” she takes the reader on a journey throughout her childhood‚ growing up where racism towards the black people was rife. The opening lines introduce a crucial theme heavily laced with rhythm‚ dialect‚ alliteration and imagery. It shows Maya’s natural gift on her use of language and her use of upbeat‚ gentle self-deprecation that she uses when she writes
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Maya Angelou‚ a native of St. Louis‚ began her life in Stamps‚ Arkansas with her paternal grandmother‚ older brother Bailey‚ and her paralyzed uncle. Stamps was a southern town plagued with segregation and‚ as Angelou remembered “..never believing whites were really real” (Angelou‚ 1969‚ pg.25). Stamps gave Maya her first exposure to the brutality of racial inequality. Her childhood was tragic and traumatic; nothing seemed to be on her side‚ yet because her resilience and passion were born out
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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
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In the book I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings‚ by Maya Angelou‚ there are several women who play very important roles in Marguerite Johnson’s life and development. Marguerite had three women in her life that educated and provided her with useful skills‚ information‚ security‚ religion and love. Momma‚ Mrs. Flowers‚ and Ma’ Dear are mother figures in Marguerite’s life who provide her with the necessities and strength to help her through life‚ Momma taught Marguerite about religion and cleanliness and
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of the greatest American writers of the nineteenth century wrote about a theme of the individual. Two that come to mind when writing about the individual are Henry David Thoreau who wrote "Civil Disobedience" and Walt Whitman who wrote "One’s-Self I Sing." Thoreau was known for being an individualist‚ who fought against materialism and social conformity. Whitman was similar to Thoreau in that he too took powerful and devoted stands against the social and cultural directions of individuals. Whitman
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