I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings | I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

At a glance:

Author: Maya Angelou
First Published: 1970
Time of Work: 1931–1945
Setting: Stamps, Arkansas; St. Louis, Missouri; and Los Angeles and San Francisco, California
Principal Characters: Maya Angelou, Bailey Johnson, Jr., Annie Henderson, Vivian Baxter, Bailey Johnson, Sr., Grandmother Baxter, Uncle Willie, Bertha Flowers, Louise Kendricks, Daddy Clidell
Genres: Nonfiction, Autobiography
Subjects: African Americans, Maturation or coming of age, Family or family life, Memory, Adolescence, Murder or homicide, South or Southerners, 1940’s, Prejudices or antipathies, Manners or customs, Social life, 1930’s, Child abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Violence, Small-town life, Youth
Locales: St. Louis, MO, Los Angeles, CA, San Francisco, CA, Stamps, AR

Form and Content

In I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou, who was born Marguerite Johnson, recounts her experiences as an African-American youth in the United States during the 1930’s and 1940’s. She candidly explores the complexities of racism, family life, and growing up. The thirty-six chapters of Angelou’s 250-page autobiography are arranged chronologically and geographically, following Angelou and her brother, Bailey, from home to home.

Angelou sets the tone of the autobiography with a three-page vignette preceding the first chapter. She...

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings | I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

At a glance:

Form and Content

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