Champion Of The World By Maya Angelou Analysis Essay

The German philosopher Nietzsche once said, “That which does not kill us, make us stronger”, and in many instances this is exactly the case. In most every instance of tragedy or hardship, the people affected must either yield to or rise above their situation, and in rising above, develop or display extraordinary and exemplary traits uniquely fitted to dealing with that situation. As a result, without adversity, these talents would be left unused. There are instances in which people crack under the pressure or sink to the expectations of their situation, but, depending on the character of the person involved, they may take the situation and use it to better themselves. It is a unique opportunity to utilize or develop traits that often remain

III. a. Maya Angelou was an avid writer, speaker, activist and teacher. As a result of the many hardships that she suffered while growing up as a poor black woman in the south she has used her own experiences as the subject matter of her written work. In doing this she effectively shows how she was able to overcome her personal obstacles. Her autobiography “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1970) tells the story of her life and how she overcame and moved forward triumphantly in spite of her circumstances.

Racism, it’s a “touchy” subject for most people. We were all born in a world where people still are unable to treat people of a different ethnicity with respect and kindness. In the novel I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, written by Maya Angelou, you are taken through the eyes of the well known civil rights activist Maya Angelou. Her original name was Marguerite Anne Johnson, and was born April 4th, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri. She got the name Maya because her brother couldn’t pronounce when he was little.

Maya Angelou was one of the founding African-American women to pave the way for modern feminism while embodying the universal struggle people face in their quest for equality. Angelou is noted to be the author who set the stage for Alice Walker 's revolutionary concept of "womanism" in the 1960s. The theory examines inequalities for minorities on a daily basis while seeking to eradicate inequality from society completely. Instead of focusing solely on women, the theory suggests that all inequality must be addressed in order to create true change. Angelou 's autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, best depicts the oppression of women minorities and the silencing nature of society before inequality began garnering more attention in America.

Undoubtedly, having paramount courage and undying love for the human race are the two virtues that anyone aspiring to live a life of purpose must have. In the Wikipedia article "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings," Angelou sheds light on the life she led as a child. She highlights the difficulties she had to go through when an opportunity for change was close to impossible (Wikipedia n.p.). Nevertheless, as a courageous young woman who discovered her passion for writing early, she used words to express herself, which later led to her success.

Rhetorical Analysis: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings In her memoir, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelo commemorates and admires strong independent black women and strives to become a well-educated woman herself. Through the use of visual imagery, Angelou describes Mrs. Flowers as a refined black woman to convey to the audience a feeling of pride and recognition for all sophisticated black women and a sense of empathy for Maya. Maya compares Mrs. Flowers to the “women in English novels” who had the luxury to sit “in front of roaring fireplaces” and drink “tea incessantly from silver trays” (93). The visual description of the “fireplace” and “tea” demonstrates to the reader the value that white women have in this society.

The world is no stranger to oppression. Madness driven from an inferiority complex based on racial stigma. Prohibition of freedom being yet another way to inflate this expanding social divide between the oppressors and the oppressed, between white and black. Within the poem I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, this concept of social division due to the desire of freedom and the desire to restrict the freedom of others is explored through the implementation of a variety of literary devices: symbolism, metaphors, sudden tone shifts, and a constant underlying allegory. Driven by her own experiences being raised during a time period where segregation and racism were acceptable behavior amongst the masses, Angelou illustrates this problematic normalization of discrimination through the juxtaposition of a free bird to a caged bird to convey the theme of oppression and the hope of freedom brought on by such.

“Champion of the World” In the excerpt, “Champion of the World,” Maya Angelou recalls of a specific time when growing up during the African American oppression. In paragraph one, Angelou uses the method of description in order to indicate that a crucial event is about to begin. She uses phrases from the passage such as, “The last inch of space was filled,” and “Uncle Willie had turned the radio up to its last notch so that youngsters on the porch wouldn’t miss a word,” so that the reader can visualize how closely packed the store was. African Americans from far away distances had even arrived in order to watch the fight (107). Their willingness to disregard personal space and distance shows the importance of the Brown Bomber’s fight to the

From the beginning of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou continuously talks about her grandmother, Annie Henderson, as a woman she looks up to and would consider her main mother figure, which is why she calls her Momma. She is described as a hardworking and well viewed black woman in Stamps, for example Momma was addressed as Mrs., “The judge had really made a gaffe calling a Negro woman Mrs…” But this is not the only reason people look up to her; she is also the owner of a successful store, this is a big accomplishment being a black woman which proves to show her hardwork and dedication. Along with being successful in the business world she is also a very religious person with an unshakable faith. She raises Maya and Bailey to be

“I know why the caged bird beats its wings (8) Til its blood is red on the cruel bars (9)”, symbolize the protest that African Americans put forth to be treated equally. All over the world protest are being held and movements are being created all in hopes of their cries possibly fall on listening ears that understand. Al African Americans want is equality in a world where equality was never an option for brown

On page 119 in the memoir Why the Caged Bird Sings, written by the African-American author Maya Angelou in 1969, she describes how Marguerite decides to go against her boss, Mrs. Cullinan because she calls her Mary instead of her birth name. This leads her to protest by wrecking a China Vase which results in her having to leave her job. During this passage, the author shows how Marguerite feels oppressed by Mrs. Cullinan calling her Mary and how she ends up planning how she can escape her job. This can be seen through the use of language, context, and the surroundings. Through the use of language, the author is able to show how Marguerite feels the urge to resolve her uncomfortable situation while also showing how she feels relieved by her escape

In a way, Angelou sets her own tone, with a unique style. She captivates a historical period, that is turned in to a story of its own. Angelou uses a metaphoric way to compare a free bird to the “white race” while the encaged one is “African American”. There is also some assonance where she states, “But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams.” Another poetic device is alliteration, she explains “A bird in a narrow cage, can see through his bars of rage”.

“Caged Bird” written by Maya Angelou in 1968 announces to the world her frustration of racial inequality and the longing for freedom. She seeks to create sentiment in the reader toward the caged bird plight, and draw compassion for the imprisoned creature. (Davis) Angelou was born as “Marguerite Annie Johnson on April 4, 1928 in St Louis, Missouri”. “Caged Bird” was first published in the collection Shaker, Why Don’t You Sing? 1983.

In the case of the books “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou and “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, it is obvious that, apart from entertainment, there is at least one more purpose of writing. Both Achebe 's and Angelou 's work, have in common the fact, that they have been written in order to relate information to the readers. “Things Fall Apart” serves the purpose of writing an alternative history and making the Igbo culture known, while “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” serves the purpose of raising awareness and educating its readers about the racial segregation in the United States, during the great depression, as well as providing them with the reason as to why Maya decided to become a writer. Angelou, however writes her story, not only for the sake of her readers, but also for herself, because it is a way of self-healing and relief.

In the poems “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou, both portray captive birds that sing. However in “Sympathy”, the bird pleads with god for freedom, whereas in “Caged Bird” the captive bird calls for help from a free bird. In “Sympathy” the bird knows what freedom feels like since there was a time where the bird was once free, but now is trapped. In the first stanza the use of imagery revealed how freedom felt before the bird was caged.