Chapter 6: Students and Teachers Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou (1928-)

Maya Angelou [Marguerite Annie Johnson] was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and raised by her grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas. She saw her mother only once between the ages of three and thirteen. After going to school in Arkansas and California, she became an actor, singer, dancer, and composer. Her political activism in the black Civil Rights movement led her to live in Ghana from 1963-1966, where she wrote, acted, and edited. Best known for the volumes of her autobiography, Angelou wrote the first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, in 1969, telling of the rape that left her mute for years. "Mrs. Bertha Flowers" is an excerpt from that volume. Later volumes include Gather Together in My Name (1974), Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas (1976), The Heart of a Woman (1981), and All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes (1986). She has written six volumes of poetry and was asked to read her poem, "On the Pulse of Morning" at President Bill Clinton's first inauguration in 1993. Her collection of essays on life, death, and the nature of good and evil, Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now, appeared in 1993. Author Links Maya Angelou This site features a photography of Angelou as well as links to other pages featuring Angelou and her work, hypertexts, interviews, commentaries. Voices From the Gaps: Maya Angelou This site features a quote from Why the Caged Bird Sings, as well as a biography, criticism, a selected bibliography, and links to related sites.

"Mrs. Bertha Flowers" Maya Angelou Voices From the Gaps: Maya Angelou

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