Introduction to Maya Angelou

a) When and where was she born?

Maya Angelous was born on April 4th , 1928, in St. Louis (United States of America) and was raised in segregated rural Arkansas.

b) What is her birth name?

Her birth name is Marguerite Johnson.

c) What was the inspiration for the title of her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings?

She wrote a poem called Caged Bird, and her autobiography's title and that poem have their bases on Sir Lawrence Dunbar's text Sympathy. Which itself talks about a caged bird and why it sings. We learn that the author, Maya Angelou, has felt like a caged bird some times in her life and that she can relate and feel empathy towards the bird. Hence, we can understand her choice of title. 

d) In her opinion, what is the most important virtue and why does she believe that?

For her, the most important virtue is courage. Because without it, all the other values that can be cultivated individually cannot be consistent.

e) What position did Angelou hold in the 1960s and who asked her to take on that role?

In that time she was appointed as the northern coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, as requested by Martin Luther King Jr. 

f) How many other influential posts has she held?

She became part of the National Comission on the Observance of International Year and also part of the American Revolutionary Bicentennial Advisory Council.

g) Find two notable ‘firsts’ that Angelou has achieved in her lifetime.

• She became one of the first afro-american women whose book reached the best-sellers.
• Her screenplay, Georgia, was the first one written by an afro-american woman to be filmed.

h) Locate some of Angelou’s poetry or notable quotes online. Find a line, image or quote that you like and describe why it appeals to you.

"The ancestors remind us, despite the history of pain
We are a going-on people who will rise again.And still we rise. "

MIllion Man March Poem, Maya Angelou.

I like this fragment from Angelou's poem because it conveys a message of hope and faith for people. It invites us to look back into our pasts, the history that directly, or indirectly, has influenced our existance. 

It portrays our ability to overcome difficulties and to be human, as she writes in other of her texts.
i) Write one thing you have discovered that has surprised you, and one question you have about Maya Angelou.

It surprised me that she turned out to be such a multi-faceted person. Well-rounded being, incredibly 'human', that even participated in activist movements for human rights. 

• What inspires her to write a poem?