Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou (Google)

Maya Angelou once said, “If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain.” Maya Angelou is an author, playwright, professional stage and screen producer, director, performer, and singer. She is a hero because she overcame past troubles and struggles against discrimination, being a single mother, and becoming an actress and powerful writer.

Angelou’s early life was very tough. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri on April 4, 1928. Her parents were divorced when Maya was only three years old. Maya and her four-year-old brother Bailey Johnson Jr., traveled to Stamps, Arkansas. There, they lived with their grandmother, Mrs. Annie Henderson, who they soon started calling “ Momma”. Momma owned a little store in Stamps. They called it “The Store”, and it was Maya’s favorite place. She remembers: “ I remember the wonderful smells: the aroma of the pickle barrel, the bulging sacks of corn, the luscious ripe fruit. You could pick up a can of snuff from North Carolina, a box of matches from Ohio, a yard of ribbon from New York . All of those places seemed terribly exotic to me. I would fantasize how people from there had actually touched those objects. It was a magnificent experience!” Maya’s father went to Stamps and talked about moving to California. On the road, Maya’s father announced a new destination; they would now be going to St. Louis, Missouri. Maya and Bailey’s mother now lived in St. Louis. In St. Louis, Maya and Bailey attended Toussaint L’ Ouverture Grammar School. There, Maya was much ahead of the other city children because of the books they read and the constant math training in Stamps. Because of this, she skipped a grade. Maya got her first library card and spent her Saturdays in the library because of her love to read. At age nine, Maya was inspired to write. Bertha Flowers, a woman who lived in Stamps, advised Maya to read poetry. Flowers read Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, which made her fall in love with poetry. She read books from A to Z of poetry from the library. Then, she started writing poetry by being in tune with her surroundings. This was the beginning of Maya becoming an amazing writer, even though she had a hard early life.

Maya faced many challenges and obstacles in her life. One challenge was that she was an African American and had to fight discrimination. Her parents were divorced, too. Maya also thought that she wasn’t pretty because she was “ a too- big negro girl, with nappy black hair, broad feet and a space between her teeth that would hold a number two pencil.” Maya was a single mother from the start. These obstacles made it hard to achieve her goals.

Maya Angelou had many contributions. When she became an actress, she was in the television mini-series “ Roots” as Nyo Boto. She was in nominated for an Emmy in 1977 for her portrayal. She was also in the traveling opera “ Porgy and Bess” and the 1973 play “Look Away”. Maya Angelou Tony award in nomination for her performance. Maya went to Cairo, Egypt where she learned about her culture from her native people. In Cairo, Maya Angelou fought discrimination, was a journalist, and researched in the library. In Ghana, she met Malcolm X, a civil rights leader. They worked together in the fight against discrimination. Malcolm X traveled back to the United States. These are contributions in Maya’s life.

Maya Angelou's First Autobiography (Google)

Maya Angelou has many awards and recognitions. One of the biggest is when Maya got chosen by President Clinton to write a poem when he was elected. Maya spent a lot of time on writing the poem and did a variety of things to help her write it. The poem was called “ The Pulse of Morning” and when she read it, it made most of the audience cry. President Clinton loved it and praised her in person multiple times. Another recognition is that Maya wrote her first autobiography, “ I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” which is an autobiography about her childhood. This book was a best seller. Her second volume of her autobiography, “ Gather Together in My Name” and her third volume “ Singin’ and Swingin’ and Getting Merry Like Christmas”. These are some of Maya’s awards and recognitions.

Maya Angelou had many good traits. One of them is Maya is intelligent. She is intelligent because she wrote three volumes of an autobiography and three poetry books. She is a playwright, professional stage and screen producer, director, performer, and singer. In addition, she is determined. She shows courage because she can stand up for herself and other people. She once said, “Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.” She also is creative because she has to make all different poems and be creative in doing so. As you can see, Maya is an amazing person.

In conclusion, Maya Angelou is intelligent, determined, and creative. She has overcome many past struggles and obstacles in her life so far. Maya Angelou’s life is very interesting although she once said: "My life has been one great big joke. A dance that's walked. A song that's spoke, I laugh so hard I almost choke, When I think about myself."