Merry Wanderer of the Night + Video

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

I was fairly lukewarm on Maya Angelou before I read I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings so when I was assigned to read the book for my American History class I was sort of "Eh." Amazingly, as soon as I picked up the book I could not put it down. Angelou's voice bleeds through the pages and it is beautiful. This is Angelou's coming-of-age story, which takes place all over Southern America. She lives with her brother, Bailey, and her grandmother, Momma, who is a store owner in the main town the story takes place, Stamps, Arkansas. Through the book Angelou describes her experiences as an African-American female and the obstacles she is forced to overcome.

My favorite aspect of this novel is probably Maya's love for Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, my favorite book. I could see how this would be an important book for her since Jane is forced to overcome obstacles because she is an orphan and she is a female. What saves Jane is really her education, which allows her to work as a woman. Maya knew she needed an education as well, but that is easier said than done. I felt like this book showed the many ways a person can get an education. At one point Maya says most of the kids in her side of town didn't know what white people looked like because they'd never seen any before. That is how segregated her town was. And of course it is easy to hate people who you have never seen before, that goes either way. Education can come through integration, and that is true for more than just race.

It's not all about overcoming gender and racial boundaries though, many of the obstacles Maya faces are simply adolescent obstacles. Or not so simply for those of us who remember our teens. I'm still overcoming those obstacles. Things like understanding love (which most of us never do), our bodies, sexuality, confidence, and what is important in life. That is why this story works, I think. It's not just about Maya's struggle, it's about a combined struggle for peace in the world and within ourselves. A combined struggle to live. "Few, if any, survive their teens. Most surrender to that vague but murderous pressure of adult conformity" (271). If that didn't sum up my teens, then I don't know what else does.

This novel earned an A.

If you want a taste of Angelou's voice check out this video of her poem Still I Rise.

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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings + Video