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=Maya Angelou by Laura Martin=

Maya Angelou is born Marguerite Johnson, on April 4, 1928, just a few short years before the United States fell into the Depression. During her life she witnesses rape, the rise of the Ku Klux Klan, extreme racism, and political and social unrest in Ghana. Her literature is a reflection of the time period in which she grew up because she clearly references to things she has seen. When Maya Angelou is seven years old, she is raped by her mother's boyfriend in her childhood home. The experience deeply affects the child and sent her into a year of silence in which she would only talk to her brother. Angelou denotes the event in "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings". In the same book she talks about helping hide her crippled uncle in a potato bin at the store her Grandmother owned so that he was not found and murdered by the KKK. Also in the early 1960s, she spent two years in Ghana observing the events transpiring there. Ghana opens her eyes to prejudice among the African groups and she realizes that racism is not exclusive to whites. In "All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes", she describes the racism and hostility among the people of Ghana and the desire for a sense of belonging. In her works, Angelou explores several reoccurring themes, racism, self-identity, and motherhood. These are all present in her autobiographical work, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." Racism was shown in two different manners. There was the racism that the KKK exhibits against everyone but their own kind and the racism between African Americans and Caucasians which caused the strict color lines in her hometown of Stamps, Arkansas. Becoming comfortable in her skin took a while and Angelou tells of this struggle in her writing. She tells of how a trip to St. Louis taught her that being a strong, independent black woman was possible. She also tells the account of how the birth of her son made her a confident woman. She no longer feels as if her life has no purpose, instead she feels "...if she fails as a mother all else has no meaning" (Beetz 95). The "Phenomenal Woman", Maya Angelou, says "I write because I am a Black woman listening to her talking people" (Bender 31). She wishes to spread the word of her people and show the world the issues that surround African Americans and herself. Her writing is a creative outlet in which she can productively release her emotions and thoughts on a subject. She also writes "...for the Black Voice and any ear which can hear it" (Bender 32). Angelou knows how to express herself poetically as well as has the ability to instinctively say what her people need her to. Through her poetry she is attempting to change how the people of the world relate to each other. She is attempting to bring peace and harmony among all races and also trying to explain some things to herself.

"All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes." __Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction__. Ed. Kirk H. Beetz, Ph.D. USA: Beacham Publishing,Corp., 1996. 94-96.
 * Annotated Bibliography**

__Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction__ contains small biographies and some critical analysis of many authors. The authors are clearly listed in the table of contents. I used information from this source in my entry on Maya Angelou. I would recommend this encyclopedia to other students researching Maya Angelou because the entries on the authors are short and easily comprehendible.

Angelou, Maya. __Shaker, Why Don't You Sing?__. New York: Random House, 1983.

The book, __Shaker, Why Don't You Sing?__ has a collection of poems by Maya Angelou. It was published in 1983 and contains some of her poems from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. I used information from this book for a quote I needed to complete my author trading card. The poems were easy to find because of the table of contents. I would recommend this book to other students because reading her poetry may help in understanding who she is as a woman.

"Chronology." __Readings on Maya Angelou.__ Eds. David Bender. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1997. 31-34, 145-149.

The book __Readings on Maya Angelou__ has a number of critical essays on Angelou's works and also includes a helpful chronology. The table of contents lists the essays and their authors as well as where the chronology is located. I used information from the chronology for my trading card and I valued the contents of a critical essay written by Maya Angelou, herself. I would recommend this book to other students because of the essay. It was about why she writes and it clears confusion about her poetry's purpose.

Smith, Sidonie Ann. "The Song of a Caged Bird: Maya Angelous Quest after Self-Acceptance." //DISCovering Authors//. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. //Student Resource Center - Gold//. Gale. Fuquay Varina High School/WCPS/. 25 May. 2008 .

Using Gale's Student Resource center I found this essay entitled "The Song of a Caged Bird: Maya Angelous Quest after Self-Acceptance." This essay granted insight into some of the themes in "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." It was very helpful in writing my wiki entry about Maya Angelou. I would recommend this essay to other students researching Maya Angelou because it very capably describes her life and gives assistance in understanding her motives.

Thomas, Rachel. "Exuberance as Beauty: The Prose and Poetry of Maya Angelou." __Bloom's Biocritiques: Maya Angelou__ 2002. Literary Reference Center. <[|http://search.ebscohost.com>.]

Using EBSCO Host's Literary Reference Center I found an essay titled "Exuberance as Beauty: The Prose and Poetry of Maya Angelou." This essay contains information on some reoccurring themes in Maya Angelou's works. It was a long-winded essay but I used some of this information to form points in my wiki entry. I would recommend this essay to other students but only if they can search through a wordy essay and be able to pull out the main points.