Maya Angelou

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Lore & Background

Angelou studied and began writing poetry at a young age. After her rape at the age of eight, as recounted in her first autobiography *I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings* (1969), she dealt with her trauma by memorizing and reciting great works of literature, including poetry, which helped bring her out of her self-imposed muteness. She considered herself a playwright and poet when her editor Robert Loomis challenged her to write *Caged Bird*, but she is best known for her autobiographies. Many of her readers identify her as a poet first and an autobiographer second, but, like Lynn Z. Bloom, many critics consider her autobiographies more important than her poetry. Critic William Sylvester has stated that although Angelou's books have been best-sellers, her poetry has "received little serious critical attention." Bloom also believes that her poetry is more interesting when she recites them, calling her performances "characteristically dynamic" and saying that Angelou "moves exuberantly, vigorously to reinforce the rhythms of the lines, the tone of the words. Her singing and dancing and electrifying stage presence transcend the predictable words and phrases."

Reader's Guide

Maya Angelou's significance lies in her transformative impact on American literature and civil rights. Her series of seven autobiographies, beginning with *I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings* (1969), broke new ground by publicly discussing her personal life, including childhood trauma. Her publisher, Random House, placed the poems of her previous volumes in *The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou* (1994), perhaps to capitalize on her popularity following her reading of "On the Pulse of Morning" at President Bill Clinton's inauguration in 1993. The volumes included in the collection are *Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Diiie* (1971), *Oh Pray My Wings Are Gonna Fit Me Well* (1975), *And Still I Rise* (1978), *Shaker, Why Don't You Sing?* (1983), and *I Shall Not Be Moved* (1990). Also included was "On the Pulse of Morning." Angelou's publisher placed four previously published poems in a smaller volume, entitled *Phenomenal Woman*, in 1995. In 2015, a year after Angelou's death, Random House published an expanded collection entitled *Maya Angelou: The Complete Poetry*, adding a dozen of her poems published after "On the Pulse of Morning," including those in *Celebrations, Rituals of Peace and Prayer* (including "A Brave and Startling Truth" and *Mother: A Cradle to Hold Me*), plus "His Day Is Done" (published after the death of Nelson Mandela in 2013) and the previously unpublished "Amazement Awaits" (commissioned for the 2008 Summer Olympics).

Did You Know?

• Angelou's first collection of poetry, *The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou*, was published in 1994 by Random House.
• She read her poem 'On the Pulse of Morning' at President Bill Clinton's inauguration in 1993.
• Her first autobiography *I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings* (1969) recounts her rape at age eight and how she dealt with trauma by memorizing and reciting great works of literature.
• Critic William Sylvester stated that although Angelou's books have been best-sellers, her poetry has 'received little serious critical attention.'
• In 2015, a year after her death, Random House published *Maya Angelou: The Complete Poetry*, which added poems including 'His Day Is Done' (published after Nelson Mandela's death in 2013) and 'Amazement Awaits' (commissioned for the 2008 Summer Olympics).