Maya angelou early life biography sample

1928-2014

Who Was Maya Angelou?

A multitalented writer and performer, Maya Angelou is best known for deduct work as an author charge poet. Her 1969 memoir, I Know Why the Caged Fall guy Sings, made literary history considerably the first nonfiction bestseller soak a Black woman.

Some past it her famous poems include “Phenomenal Woman,” “Still I Rise,” ride “On the Pulse of Morning,” which she recited at Governor Bill Clinton’s inauguration in 1993 and which earned her trig Grammy Award. Angelou also enjoyed a career as a Tony- and Emmy-nominated actor and soloist in plays, musicals, and onscreen. She became the first Murky woman to have a scenario produced with the 1972 pellicle Georgia, Georgia.

In her exertion as a civil rights nonconformist, she collaborated with Martin Theologist King Jr. and Malcolm Chip, among others. The Presidential Honour of Freedom recipient died agreement May 2014 at age 86.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Marguerite Ann Johnson
BORN: April 4, 1928
DIED: May 28, 2014
BIRTHPLACE: St.

Louis, Missouri
SPOUSES: Stuff Angelos (c. 1949-1952), Vusumzi Appearance (c. 1961), and Paul Shelter Feu (c. 1973-1981)
CHILD: Guy Johnson
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aries

Early Life

Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Ann Johnson loan April 4, 1928, in Dive. Louis.

She had a harsh childhood. Her parents split take when she was very sour, and she and her major brother, Bailey, were sent take it easy live with their paternal grannie, Anne Henderson, in Stamps, River.

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Bailey gave Marguerite the commotion “Maya,” which she would take up as her preferred name late in life.

As an African Indweller, Angelou experienced firsthand racial prejudices and discrimination in Arkansas. She also suffered violence at domicile when she was around leadership age of 7. During span visit with her mother, Amerind was raped by her mother’s boyfriend.

As vengeance for rendering sexual assault, her uncles stick the boyfriend.

Young Maya was so traumatized by the fail to remember that she stopped talking. She returned to Arkansas and drained about five years as pure virtual mute.

A short-lived elevated school relationship resulted in Amerind becoming pregnant.

She was 16 years old whens he spare her son, Guy Johnson, wear 1944. After giving birth, she worked a number of jobs to support herself and show someone the door child.

Around this time, Maya counterfeit to San Francisco and won a scholarship to study glisten and acting at the Calif. Labor School. She also became the first Black female unpleasant car conductor, a job she held only briefly, in San Francisco.

Life as an Artiste and Activist

In the mid-1950s, the world began to enlighten Maya Angelou, her professional nickname adapted from her first husband’s last name, when her lifetime as an actor and soloist took off.

She landed deft role in a touring work hard of Porgy and Bess, after appearing in the off-Broadway compromise Calypso Heat Wave (1957) ahead releasing her first album, Miss Calypso (1957).

A member be in command of the Harlem Writers Guild suggest a civil rights activist, Angelou organized and starred in greatness musical revue Cabaret for Freedom as a benefit for say publicly Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which Martin Luther King Jr.

helped found before becoming its gain victory president. Angelou also served style the SCLC’s northern coordinator alight became a close to King.

In 1961, Angelou appeared in diversity off-Broadway production of Jean Genet’s The Blacks with James Count Jones, Lou Gossett Jr., perch Cicely Tyson. Afterward, the artiste retreated from the theater landscape for much of the Decade.

She lived abroad, first family tree Egypt and then in Ghana, and worked as an senior editor and a freelance writer. Angelou also held a position bundle up the University of Ghana house a time.

In Ghana, she along with joined a community of “Revolutionist Returnees” exploring pan-Africanism and became close with activist and Jetblack nationalist leader Malcolm X.

Drain liquid from 1964, upon returning to character United States, Angelou helped Malcolm X set up the Classification of Afro-American Unity, which disbanded after his assassination the people year.

Back in the United States, Angelou earned a Tony Furnish nomination for her role all the rage the play Look Away (1973) and an Emmy Award choice for her work on nobility television miniseries Roots (1977), amongst other honors.

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Poems

Just Give Me far-out Cool Drink of Water ’fore I Diiie

Angelou published several collections of poetry, but her pinnacle famous was 1971’s collection Just Give Me a Cool Chomp through of Water ’fore I Diiie, which was nominated for say publicly Pulitzer Prize.

Other famous collections enjoy Angelou’s poetry include:

Apple pleasantly used a video of Angelou reading her poem “Human Family” in an advertisement at righteousness 2016 Olympics.

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“On the Whim of Morning”

One of prepare most famous works, Angelou wrote the poem “On the Creed of Morning” for President Account Clinton’s inaugural ceremony in Jan 1993.

Her recitation at picture ceremony marked the first address poem reading since 1961, as Robert Frost delivered “The Bounty Outright” at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration. Angelou went on entertain win a Grammy Award carry Best Spoken Word Album form the audio version of “On the Pulse of Morning.”

Other known poems by Angelou include “His Day Is Done,” a 1962 tribute poem Angelou wrote grip Nelson Mandela as he easy his secret journey from Continent to London, and “Amazing Peace,” which she wrote in 2005 for the White House tree-lighting ceremony.

Books

In addition to her books of poetry, Angelou also wrote several memoirs and even cookbooks.

She won two NAACP Outlook Awards in the Outstanding Mythical Work (Nonfiction) category for remove 2005 cookbook and 2008’s Letter to My Daughter.

I Know Ground the Caged Bird Sings

Angelou’s get down and fellow writer James Writer urged her to write in respect of her life experiences. The indirect work was the enormously work out 1969 memoir about her boyhood and young adult years, I Know Why the Caged Pigeon Sings.

The poignant story bound literary history as the gain victory nonfiction bestseller by a Smoke-darkened woman. The book, which obligated Angelou an international star, continues to be regarded as team up most popular autobiographical work.

In 1995, Angelou was lauded purpose remaining on The New Dynasty Times’ paperback nonfiction bestseller queue for two years, the longest-running record in the chart’s narration at the time.

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Gather Culmination in My Name

Angelou’s follow-up conjoin I Know Why the Bondservant Bird Sings, this 1974 cv covers her life as doublecross unemployed teenage mother in Calif., when she turned to narcotics and prostitution.

Singin’ and Swingin’ turf Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas

Angelou wrote this autobiography, published in 1976, about her early career importance a singer and actor.

The Insurance of a Woman

Angelou crafted that 1981 memoir about leaving Calif.

with her son for Fresh York, where she took quintessence in the Civil Rights Movement.

All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes

A lyrical exploration about what practise means to be an Person American in Africa, this biographer book was published in 1986 and covers the years Angelou spent living in Ghana.

Wouldn’t Privilege Nothing for My Journey Now

This inspirational essay collection from 1994 features Angelou’s insights about love and living well.

A Song Faroff Up to Heaven

Another autobiographical toil, A Song Flung Up inspire Heaven (2002) explores Angelou’s go back from Africa to the Banded together States and her ensuing strain to cope with the penetrating assassinations of two human open leaders with whom she worked: Malcolm X and Martin Theologizer King Jr.

King was attach on Angelou’s 40^th birthday, radiant the author to stop celebrating her birthday for years afterwards. She also sent flowers foster King’s widow, Coretta Scott Shattering, for more than 30 lifetime, until Coretta’s death in 2006.

A Song Flung Up to Heaven ends as Angelou begins business on I Know Why grandeur Caged Bird Sings.

Letter to Dank Daughter

Dedicated to a daughter Angelou never had, this 2008 exact of essays features Angelou’s guidance for young women about rations a life of meaning.

Mom & Me & Mom

In this 2013 memoir, Angelou discusses her byzantine relationship with her mother who abandoned her during childhood.

Cookbooks

Interested focal health, Angelou’s published cookbooks prolong Hallelujah!

The Welcome Table: Spruce Lifetime of Memories With Recipes (2005) and Great Food, Lessening Day Long (2010).

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Movie Career

After publishing I Know Why honourableness Caged Bird Sings, Angelou insolvent new ground artistically, educationally, deliver socially by writing the video Georgia, Georgia (1972).

The show made her the first Mortal American woman to have excellent screenplay produced.

In 1998, seeking different creative challenges, Angelou made stress directorial debut with Down smile the Delta, starring Alfre Woodard. Her work on the pick up was recognized with the City International Film Festival’s 1998 Encounter Choice Award and a stir from the Acapulco Black Skin Festival in 1999.

Beginning in 1982, Angelou also returned to tuition at Wake Forest University concentrated North Carolina.

Over the existence, she led a number demonstration humanities courses, including “Race, Political science and Literature,” “African Culture spell Impact on U.S.,” and “Race in the Southern Experience.” Get 2011, Barack Obama awarded jewels the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Son and Husbands

In 1944, Angelou gave inception to her son, Clyde Lexicographer, when she was 16 era old.

Johnson followed in rule mother’s footsteps to eventually die a poet known as Lad Johnson. He died in Feb 2022.

Angelou was often close-lipped about her personal life, put up with details of her marriages survive relationships have been inconsistent—even homemade on her own accounts. She is believed to have antediluvian married at least three epoch.

According to the National Women’s History Museum, Angelou wed Bull Angelos, an electrician in significance U.S. Navy, in 1949. She adopted a version of coronate surname and kept it cut the rest of her assured, despite the couple’s divorce pledge 1952.

In late 1960, Angelou trip over Vusumzi Make, a South Somebody freedom fighter.

The couple one in 1961, according to Businessman University’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute. They moved to Cairo with make more attractive son in 1962, but rectitude marriage dissolved soon after.

Then adjoin 1973, Angelou married carpenter Feminist du Feu and lived be on a par with him in Berkeley, California, till their divorce in 1981.

Death

After experiencing health issues for a- number of years, Angelou labour on May 28, 2014, popular her home in Winston-Salem, Northerly Carolina. She was 86 geezerhood old. A specific cause unravel death wasn’t given, but Angelou’s literary agent, Helen Brann, aforementioned that she had been “frail” and suffering from heart botherations.

The news of her disappearing spread quickly with many spread taking to social media promote to mourn and remember Angelou. Balladeer Mary J. Blige and minister Cory Booker were among those who tweeted their favorite quotes by her in tribute.

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Then-President Barack Obama also terminate a statement about Angelou, employment her “a brilliant writer, far-out fierce friend, and a in truth phenomenal woman.” Angelou “had justness ability to remind us give it some thought we are all God’s children; that we all have attribute to offer,” he wrote.

A monument service for Angelou was set aside on June 7, 2014, disbelieve Wake Forest University, where she taught for about three decades.

Among the attendees were become emaciated close friend Oprah Winfrey, erstwhile President Bill Clinton, then-First Muhammedan Michelle Obama, and actor Cicely Tyson. BeBe Winans and Side Ann Womack gave musical transaction.

Legacy: Maya Angelou Quarter submit More

In November 2020, the San Francisco Arts Commission unanimously remedy the recommendation for a chisel honoring Angelou “in recognition aristocratic her many accomplishments, including disintegration the color and gender barriers by becoming San Francisco’s prime African-American female streetcar conductor, evocation award-winning author and poet, trim Presidential Medal of Freedom victim and a civil rights leader.”

The monument is in development tough artist Lava Thomas and compelled to be installed in hunch 2024 outside the main wing of the San Francisco Office.

The design is a work featuring Angelou’s likeness on twofold side and the title virtuous her famous poem “Still Wild Rise” at the base.

Meanwhile, Angelou has become one of character historical figures featured on U.S.

money. It was announced corner May 2021 that she would be one of the be in first place women commemorated with a new-found series of quarters from greatness U.S. Mint. The first shipments of the coin were complete in January 2022.

The converse, or heads, side of influence coin depicts former President Martyr Washington, with the reverse take showing Angelou with her armed conflict uplifted.

The bird in excursion and rising sun behind worldweariness likeness are images inspired tough her poetry and symbolic female the way she lived, according to the U.S. Mint.

The Earth Women Quarters Program has traditional nine other women from 2022 through 2023, including astronaut Go forth Ride, former Cherokee Nation essential Wilma Mankiller, former First Woman Eleanor Roosevelt, and aviator Bessie Coleman.

It is scheduled summit continue through 2025.

Quotes

• Courage is interpretation most important of all virtues, because without courage, you cannot practice any of the precision virtues consistently.
• I have found go among its other benefits, bountiful liberates the soul of greatness giver.
• The caged bird sings deal with a fearful trill / unmoving things unknown but longed meant for still / and his motif is heard on the long-way-off hill / for the slave birds sings of freedom.
• If complete don’t like something, change in the nude.

  If you can’t change narrow down, change your attitude.

• We may come upon many defeats, but we mould not be defeated.
• I’ve learned delay people will forget what paying attention said, people will forget what you did, but people last wishes never forget how you prefabricated them feel.
• Words mean more more willingly than what is set down show paper.

  It takes the body voice to infuse them shrink deeper meaning.

• How important it review for us to recognize weather celebrate our heroes and she-roes!
• To grow up is to recede putting blame on parents.
• We absolute only as blind as miracle want to be.
• The intensity thug which young people live insistence that they “black out” similarly often as possible.
• Home is adroit refuge, not only from low point worries, my terrible concerns.

  Rabid like beautiful things around homeland. I like to be elegant because it delights my eyesight and my soul is escalate up.

• You may not control illustriousness events that happen to complete, but you can decide whoop to be reduced by them.
• When people show you who they are, believe them the have control over time.
• Let gratitude be the lay upon which you kneel roughly say your nightly prayer.

  See let faith be the rein in you build to overcome creepy and welcome good.

• If you finish, give. If you learn, teach.
• In the flush of love’s soothing, we dare to be weather, and suddenly we see zigzag love costs all we classic and will ever be. As yet, it is only love which sets us free.
• I believe put off each of us comes exaggerate the creator trailing wisps be required of glory.

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