Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou was one of the best writers of all time she has also face a lot of adversity. "Her own life an example of perseverance in the face of adversity.Courage, I believe, is the most important of all virtues, because without courage, you cannot practice any other virtue consistently," she said. "People have to have courage to say, "it's all right to admit that human beings are more alike than they are unlike.' Florida State University did those 50 years ago" (Maya). Maya Angelou has faced a lot of adversity. Maya Angelou had courage to overcome the adversity she faced. "Angelou has published six autobiographies, five books of essays and numerous books of poetry, as well as a number of plays, screenplays and television scripts" In 2011, President Obama awarded her the highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.  

Dr. Maya Angelou has written some of the most well known books in the world. "February as Maya Angelou receives the President's Medal of Freedom; she will host her first-ever public radio program, available to all PRI, Public Radio International, affiliated stations and African American Consortium stations free of charge (Maya Angelou - Biography). Intimate and provocative stories, poems and conversations will illuminate African American history including comedy, film and family life, rounding out the hour with memories of "mother and sister friend,"(Maya). The late civil rights activist Dorothy Height" (Dr. Maya). "When she returned to the United States, Angelou worked as writer-producer for 20th Century-Fox Television, from which her full-length feature film Sisters, Sisters received critical acclaim. In addition, she wrote the screenplays Georgia, Georgia and All Day Long along with the television scripts for Sister, Sister and the series premiere of Brewster Place. She wrote, produced, and hosted the NET public broadcasting series Blacks! Blues! Black!"(Maya) Angelou also co-starred in the motion picture How to Make an American Quilt in 1995. Angelou has been a prolific poet for decades. Her collections include Just Give Me A Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Die 1971; Oh Pray My Wings Are Going to Fit Me Well 1975; And Still I Rise (1976), which was produced as a choreo-poem on Off-Broadway in 1979; and Shaker, Why Don't You Sing in 1983 (Poems: Maya Angelou (1986); Life Doesn't Frighten Me, illustrated by celebrated New York artist Jean Michel Basquiat 1993; On the Pulse of the Morning , recited at Bill Clinton's first Presidential Inauguration; Soul Looks Back in Wonder (1994); and I Shall Not Be Moved (1997), her first book of poetry in over 10 years. Maya Angelou is multi talent because not only can she write books and poems, she can also sing. Though her multi talents she is able to inspire people to overcome adversity. A characteristic of being a hero is being multi-talented. 

Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri. Growing up in rural Stamps, Arkansas, with her brother, Bailey, Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri. "Growing up in rural Stamps, Arkansas, with her brother, Bailey, during this time she served as northern coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference at the request of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." "When she returned to the United States, Angelou worked as writer-producer for 20th Century-Fox Television, from which her full-length feature film Sisters, Sisters received critical acclaim. In addition, she wrote the screenplays Georgia, Georgia and All Day Long along with the television scripts for Sister, Sister and the series premiere of Brewster Place. She wrote, produced, and hosted the NET public broadcasting series Blacks! Blues! Black! Angelou also co-starred in the motion picture How to Make an American Quilt in 1995" (Encyclopedia of World Biography). Angelou receives the president's Medal of Freedom. She also wanted freedom of change. American history.

Angelou's autobiographical works have an important place in the African American tradition of personal narrative, and they continue to garner praise for their honesty and moving sense of dignity. Although an accomplished poet and dramatist, Angelou is dedicated to the art of autobiography. Angelou explained that she is "not afraid of the ties [between past and present]. I cherish them, rather. It's the vulnerability ... it's allowing oneself to be hypnotized. That's frightening because we have no defenses, nothing. We've slipped down the well and every side is slippery. And how on earth are you going to come out? That's scary. But I've chosen it, and I've chosen this mode as my mode." Angelou explained that she is "not afraid of the ties [between past and present]. I cherish them, rather. It's the vulnerability ... it's allowing oneself to be hypnotized. That's frightening because we have no defenses, nothing. We've slipped down the well and every side is slippery. And how on earth are you going to come out? That's scary. But I've chosen it, and I've chosen this mode as my mode Martin Luther King, Jr.  asked Dr. Angelou to serve as Northern Coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Maya Angelou (born 1928)--author, poet, playwright, stage and screen performer, and director--is best known for her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1970), which recalls a young African American woman's discovery of her self-confidence. "Although Angelou began her literary career as a poet, she is well known for her five autobiographical works, which depict sequential periods of her life. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" (President Obama Names Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients). Are about Marguerite Johnson and her brother Bailey growing up in Arkansas? "It chronicles Angelou's life up to age sixteen, providing a child's perspective of the perplexing world of adults" (Encyclopedia of World Biography). Although her grandmother instilled pride and confidence in her, her self-image was shattered when she was raped at the age of eight by her mother's boyfriend. "Angelou was so devastated by the attack that she refused to speak for approximately five years" (President Obama Names Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients). I Know Why the Caged Bird sings conclude with Angelou having regained self-esteem and caring for her newborn son, Guy. In addition to being a trenchant account of an African American girl's coming-of-age, this work affords insights into the social and political tensions of the 1930s. Simonies Ann Smith echoed many critics when she wrote: "Angelou's genius as a writer is her ability to recapture the texture of the way of life in the texture of its idioms, its idiosyncratic vocabulary and especially in its process of image-making" (Encyclopedia of World Biography). Angelou also wrote a children's book entitled Kofi and His Magic in 1996. In conclusion Maya is a hero in anyways like being multi talented, a humanitarian, and she also knows how to overcome adversity.