Maya Angelou’s autobiography consists of six volumes. Born in 1928, she started writing down the story of her life in 1968. Robert Loomis, an editor at Random House, had asked her several times to write an autobiography, but she never agreed because she thought it was too difficult. He decided to trick her into writing by telling her: “I must say you may be right not to attempt an autobiography, because it is nearly impossible to write autobiography as literature. Almost impossible” (p.1165, ll.14ff.).
Maya Angelou could not resist this challenge and started writing the first volume, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, that tells the reader about her childhood in segregated Arkansas, St Louis and San Francisco and the birth of her son Guy.
The second volume, published in 1974, is called Gather together in my name. It deals with Maya’s experiences as a young mother who struggles for survival after World War II.
Only two years later, in the third part, Singin’ and Swingin’ and Getting’ Merry Like Christmas, the start of her career as a singer touring Europe with Porgy & Bess is described.
In The Heart of a Woman, the fourth volume of her autobiography, 1981, Maya Angelou remembers how she started writing in New York where she worked for the NAACP in black politics. It also contains an account of her marriage with the African freedom fighter Vusumzi Make she followed to Africa.
All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes is the title of the fifth part, published in 1986: Maya is looking for her ancestors in Ghana, but notices that she does not belong there either.
In 2002 the last volume (so far) is finished: A Song Flung Up to Heaven deals with the situation in the USA around Malcolm X’s and Martin Luther King’s assassinations and ends with the moment Maya starts writing her autobiography.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1. Maya Angelou’s Autobiographies
2. In how far is Angelou's style influenced by the quest for her self?
2.1. Angelou’s style and her African-American self
2.2. Angelou’s style and her female self
3. Conclusion
Research Objectives and Themes
This academic paper explores the relationship between Maya Angelou's literary style and her lifelong quest for self-identity throughout her six-volume autobiographical work, examining how her personal evolution as an African-American woman informs her narrative techniques and linguistic choices.
- The chronological development of Angelou's autobiographical narrative voice.
- The impact of racial identity and the transition from individual to collective consciousness.
- The influence of femininity and personal relationships on the author's self-perception.
- The stylistic progression from childlike observation to mature, reflective prose.
- The transformation of autobiographical writing into a literary art form.
Excerpt from the Book
2.1. Angelou’s style and her African-American self
Since Angelou has decided to write her autobiography as literature and in a poetical way, style inevitably plays an important part in it. This is why I put up the thesis that the style and arrangement of Maya Angelou’s autobiography develops around her quest for her self from the start.
The autobiography begins in the middle of an identity crisis: the protagonist, Marguerite Johnson, has to recite a poem at a church gathering but cannot remember the words. Still, in this situation she does not think about her reasons for failing, but about her wish to be white. This introduces us to her inner conflict of being black.
I was going to look like one of the sweet little white girls who were everybody’s dream of what was right with the world. [ . . . ] I was really white and because a cruel fairy stepmother, who was understandably jealous of my beauty, had turned me into a too-big Negro girl, with nappy black hair, broad feet and a space between her teeth that would hold a number-two pencil. (p.7, ll.19ff.)
The first chapters, when Marguerite is very young and there are not many memories of that time, is a collection of facts that present the surroundings of her childhood and give a background to her story. They begin with the formulaic words “When I was three and Bailey four” (p.9, ll.23).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter provides an overview of the six volumes of Maya Angelou's autobiographies and explains the circumstances of their creation, including the editor's influence.
2. In how far is Angelou's style influenced by the quest for her self?: This central chapter investigates how Angelou's personal search for identity shapes her narrative style, focusing on both her racial and gendered experiences.
3. Conclusion: The final chapter summarizes the developmental trajectory of Angelou's life and writing, concluding that she successfully defines her self through the act of becoming a writer.
Keywords
Maya Angelou, Autobiography, African-American Literature, Identity, Self-Discovery, Narrative Style, Racial Conflict, Female Self, Memoir, Literature, Poetical Prose, Cultural Awareness, Personal Development.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental focus of this academic work?
The work examines the connection between Maya Angelou's personal identity formation and the stylistic evolution of her six-volume autobiographical series.
Which core thematic areas are analyzed in the paper?
The analysis covers Angelou's racial identity as an African-American, her struggle with femininity and gender roles, and her growth as a literary writer.
What is the primary research question?
The study seeks to determine to what extent Maya Angelou's unique writing style is influenced by her ongoing quest for a coherent sense of self.
Which research methodology is employed?
The author uses a qualitative literary analysis, examining specific textual passages from Angelou's books and referencing critical secondary literature to interpret stylistic shifts.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The main body evaluates how the narrative perspective shifts from childhood innocence to political maturity, and how the author navigates the tension between private life and public activism.
What are the primary characteristics of Angelou's writing style?
Key characteristics include her deliberate use of poetical prose, the adaptation of dialect, and a transition from individualistic "me-ism" to a collective "our-ism."
How does Angelou deal with the trauma of her childhood in her writing?
The paper highlights how Angelou's silence after her traumatic childhood experience manifests in her narrative through an intensified focus on sensory descriptions before she eventually finds her voice.
Does the author conclude that Angelou successfully found her "true self"?
The study concludes that while Angelou did not find one fixed "self," she successfully constructed an identity through the craft of writing and the development of her own distinct literary style.
- Quote paper
- BA, MA Kathrin Gerbe (Author), 2004, Maya Angelou's quest for her self, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/45655
