Written by A.C.
Picture below: Author with her book
Information
Author: Maya Angelou / Genre: Autobiography / Published: 1969
Summary (contains spoilers):
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings details Angelou’s personal account of her life through the lens of a phoenix arising from the flames of despair. Angelou describes the budding years of her short, innocent childhood as a world encompassed around the endearment of Bailey and Momma (Grandma). She also mentions the musty department store of Stapes, Arkansas, and of sweet, dewy mornings overlooking the worn hands of the cotton farmers and their subtle lilts of smiles. Despite the delicacy of the mornings airing the tension of night, searing rays of the sun soon burn the backs of the farmers, scorching them with the premonition of lynchings or “powhitefolk” attacks of daylight. Even under Angelou’s devout “God,” a creeping threat of death lies above the small town of Stapes. In her worn lavender dress, Angelou breathes the young air of childhood hand in hand with Bailey, her sweet brother.
Following the divorce of Angelou’s parents and a move to Arkansas was a life of sweet motherly love filled with lipstick cheek kisses and homemade meals. However, Mr. Freeman, Angelou’s mother’s lover, came like a sour coughdrop. “Keep your legs closed and never show your pocketbook,” Maya’s mother told her. Despite her advice, Mr. Freeman, greedy, with lust clouding the irises of morals, stripped the flowy lavender dresses, the pocketbooks, the tight-lipped legs, and Maya’s innocence. Suddenly, threats of death came not only from the entitled white mouths of America but from her own family as well.
When the court could not contain Mr. Freeman, his sudden death did. Angelou, still a child, felt the burden of guilt, pain, and self-hostility. Mornings never seemed the same as nights were never as cozy as before. Instead, a searing iron coal sat at the bottom of her stomach burning the pocketbook she held dear and ironing a nightmare into the body she could no longer call herself. Her struggle to claim her body as hers brought a struggle for feminism and the autonomy of a Black woman. Only when a mistake was made did the caged bird find its voice to sing a song of survival and rebirth.
How the Book Relates to the Modern World:
Maya Angelou’s memoir explores the struggles of minority women by facing her adversities with straightforward and momentous writing to paint a story of suffering and healing. As both the violations of women’s bodies and the marginalization of African-American women continue to be normalized, Angelou’s powerful autobiography reveals the broken, imperfect history from the age of segregation and misogyny that still have roots in today’s systems that must be reformed and reshaped for the future.
Why the Book Should be Read in Schools:
Because of structural bias, students are still not exposed to or taught how to respect women and empower minority groups such as African Americans who are the backbone of America’s history. Today, topics or curricula of slavery and the abuse of African Americans are still disregarded in classrooms. Implementing Maya Angelou’s autobiography into the school curriculum which explores abuse and the spectrum of discrimination without filter will allow students and faculty to share a deeper understanding of the issues we face today and how to better prepare students to forge kindness, equality, and acceptance in today’s society. The subtle yet conspicuous voice of Maya Angelou will enrapture students and paint an impactful story for them to read.
Rating:
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings entails the violating pain of rape and the beauty of healing that will bring heartbreak and tears but will present each experience as a lyrical piece that will leave you in awe.
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