I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

In Maya Angelou's famous poem "Caged Bird," she contrasts the life of a free, independent bird with that of an oppressed and manacled caged bird. The title corresponds to the life of the imprisoned...

I would say that the purpose of this great autobiography is two-fold. Firstly, it allows Marguerite Johnson, later known as Maya Angelou, to make sense of the breathtaking series of events which...

Figurative language refers to the techniques a writer uses to enhance his or her writing and to create images so that the reader can enjoy the text and understand his or her purpose. This can be...

Marguerite admires Mrs. Flowers for many reasons. Most importantly, Mrs. Flowers is able to throw Marguerite what the author refers to as "my life line." In addition, Marguerite admires the way...

In the poem "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou, Angelou contrasts the caged bird with the free bird. In doing this, she emphasizes the plight of the bird in the cage. The caged bird...

In order to determine the meaning of this line, we must first look at the following line for more information. Out of the huts of history’s shame I rise Up from a past that’s rooted in pain I...

Mrs. Flowers is an important part of young Marguerite’s life. This is in large part because she teaches Marguerite firstly to love and respect books and secondly to understand the significance of...

In the book, Marguerite uses a metaphor to explain how she feels about her grandmother's store. She likens the store to "an unopened present from a stranger" when it stands "alone and empty in the...

The rhyme scheme in this poem is loose and somewhat erratic. In the first stanza, for example, there are no full end rhymes—although there is some assonance which creates a pattern of half-rhymes....

Well, the root problem is the abuse that Marguerite suffered when she was living with her mother at the hands of her step-father. As Chapter 14 makes clear, the impact that this horrendous incident...

Mrs. Flowers introduces Marguerite to a number of new ideas during their first meeting. On the walk over to her house, Mrs. Flowers tells Marguerite first that Language is man's way of...

Mrs. Flowers is a dominant figure during a difficult period in Marguerite's life. The above quote references one of the life lessons that Mrs. Flowers teaches Marguerite. The latter basically...

In Maya Angelou's autobiographical book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Mrs. Flowers, a literary African-American woman in Stamps, Arkansas, becomes Maya's mentor and the first person who...

Marguerite, or "Maya," has a complicated relationship with her grandmother, who she refers to as "Momma." As a child, she often resents the fact that her grandmother is so strict and religious. It...

Maya Angelou's autobiographical book ends with the birth of her son because it reinforces the main theme of the novel, the maturation of the main character Marguerite. By keeping the pregnancy a...

A hyperbole is a literary device that over-exaggerates a particular detail or fact; this over-emphasis highlights the seriousness of a situation from a character's point of view. Take Marguerite's...

In chapter 35 of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou describes the father of her son very briefly and does not even give his name. He was one of "two handsome brothers...easily the most...

The relationship between Maya and her brother, Bailey, is incredibly complex from its beginnings. The two of them are sent to live with their paternal grandmother, nicknamed Momma, in a southern...

As children living in Stamps, Arkansas with their grandmother, Maya and Bailey cried during Christmas after receiving gifts from their estranged parents. Maya recalls receiving a photograph from...

A metaphor is a direct comparison of two things by saying that object 1 is or was object 2. For instance, "my love is a rose." I'll identify a few metaphors in the novel to help you get...

Maya identifies her first love as William Shakespeare and his written works. As a girl, she reads every single book in the small library in Stamps, Arkansas. In chapter 2, she explains why the...

In the middle of the night "the used-to-be sheriff" comes up to the store to warn Momma, whom he calls Annie, "to lay low" because "a crazy" black man "messed...

After a traumatic experience in St. Louis that scars Maya and results in an unexpected move back to Stamps, her newfound relationship with Mrs. Flowers offers a road to healing and growth. Maya is...

William Johnson, Uncle Willie, is mostly described in chapter 2 of Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. He is characterized by his disability; at just three years old, a baby sitter...

A shy and inhibited girl, Marguerite "sopped" around her environment until one day when Mrs. Flowers throws her "a lifeline" and asks specifically for Marguerite to carry her purchases home with...

Angelou is able to illuminate the stakes as being high for African- Americans when Joe Louis was about to fight for the heavyweight championship against Primo Carnera. It was clear that African-...

Whitefolks couldn't be people because their feet were too small, their skin too white and see-throughy, and they didn't walk on the balls of their feet the way people did—they walked on their...

There is one section of the novel where Momma is talking to one of her customers that comes into the store. Momma is a woman of faith, and her conversations often end with phrases such as “Bless...

Young Marguerite makes the choice to speak to Mrs. Flowers because she senses that the older woman is different from the other adults in her life. Mrs. Flowers never makes Marguerite feel like...

Because they were instructed to do so by their Momma, Bailey and Marguerite for the most part stood by quietly when the ill-behaved "powhitetrash" children came into the store. If one of...

Maya lies on the witness stand because of events that led up to her rape by Mr. Freeman. Mr. Freeman had molested her multiple times leading up to her rape (Chapter 11). When asked by the...

Maya Angelou gives an account of her formative years in I Know Why The Caged Birds Sing. It is through this account that we establish how the women in her life mold her into the person she becomes....

During Maya's time working for Mrs. Cullinan, she was taught the antiquated system of keeping house in the pre-war South. While she teaches Maya the proper way to keep a house, she is trying to...

Knowing what I know about Angelou, I believe that the title of this novel has great significance, and that hope is an integral part both of the title and the entire narrative. On her website,...

This book is written in the style of an autobiography. It is in the first person point of view and tells the story of her life in chronological order. However, ever the poet, Angelou uses many...

The best description would probably be African American Vernacular English, which is closely related to Southern American English and Creole dialects. It has been recognized as an official English...

Maya finds Ms. Flowers remarkable because she posseses a sense of self and self-confidence that is rare among the black women Maya has known. She is elegant and assured, kind and intelligent,...

Marguerite compares Mrs. Flowers to the women of leisure found in English novels. In Chapter 15, Marguerite tells us that Mrs. Flowers reminded her of women "who walked the moors with their loyal...

In Stamps, Maya and Bailey have the advantage of a close and nurturing community to help in their growing up. As Maya describes in the first chapter of the book, once the people of Stamps see that...

Both Angelou and Naidu were activists and poets. The poets used “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and “The Bangle Sellers” to share the expectations and hardships women faced in their cultures....

Maya and her brother Bailey are raised in Stamps, Arkansas by their grandmother, whom they call "Momma," after their parents abandon them. Momma runs a general store in town, whose revenue she uses...

Maya Angelou quotes the radio announcer in order to take readers back to the significant moment in Maya's life and history when African American boxer Joe Louis defeated Max Schmeling and remained...

Marguerite, Maya's character in the book, says she was around ten years old at the time the incident occurred.In Chapter 5, Marguerite describes the incident when the "powhitetrash" girls...

The section of the novel that you want to look at is Chapter Fifteen, which introduces Mrs. Flowers to us and also narrates the first visit that Maya paid to Mrs. Flowers, and the impact it had...

Marguerite was sent to work at Mrs. Cullinan's house to learn sewing and culinary skills. It took Marguerite a week to distinguish between the bread, salad, and dessert plates. She also had to...

One of the prominent metaphors in Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" is Maya's recollection of her personal history from "the perch of age." (See pg 5, Ch 4). This metaphor lets us know...

Maya Angelou published her memoir as a successful adult looking back at a difficult childhood. She begins these recollections with a single event that encapsulates the challenges she faced. While...

Mrs. Flowers encourages Marguerite to listen to "mother wit" because she recognizes the wisdom and truth in folklore/country sayings, tales, phrases, and idioms. Thus, the answer to this question...

Maya and Bailey are abandoned by their parents. The parents divorce when the children are little and send their children to Stamps, Arkansas, to live with their grandmother (Momma). They travel...

The difference between static and dynamic is largely the extent of change and growth. Dynamic characters develop in the course of the time period covered in the work. A static character is also...