Maya Angelou Biography

Maya Angelou (1928-2014) was an American poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist. She was born Marguerite Annie Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri and spent much of her childhood in Stamps, Arkansas. She experienced trauma early in life when she was raped at the age of 7 by her mother's boyfriend, who was subsequently killed by her uncles. Angelou was so traumatized by the incident that she became mute for several years, using writing as a form of self-expression.

Angelou eventually moved to San Francisco, California, where she began performing in the arts scene and joined the civil rights movement. She worked with both Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, and her activism inspired much of her later writing.

Angelou's first memoir, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, was published in 1969 and became a best-seller. The book is a coming-of-age story that explores Angelou's childhood experiences and the racism and sexism she faced throughout her life. It is widely regarded as a classic of African-American literature.

Over the course of her career, Angelou published several more memoirs, as well as poetry collections and essays. Her writing often addressed issues of race, identity, and social injustice, and her powerful and inspiring words resonated with readers around the world.

In addition to her writing, Angelou was also a talented singer and actress. She appeared in several films and television shows, and she was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance in the play Look Away.

Angelou was the recipient of many awards and honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States. She died in 2014 at the age of 86, leaving behind a legacy as one of the most important voices of her generation.

Maya Angelou Childhood

When she was not yet eight years old, she was raped by her mother's boyfriend and spoke about it, then he was murdered. The series of traumatic events left her almost completely speechless for several years.

These issues were the focus of his first autobiographical work, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, which was critically acclaimed and nominated for a National Book Award. She is well-known for her series of six autobiographical volumes, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first and most highly acclaimed, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her first seventeen years. This book brought her international recognition, and was nominated for a National Book Award.

In 1961 she was persuaded by a South African dissident to whom she was briefly married to move to Cairo, where she worked for the Arab Observer. She later moved to Ghana and worked on The African Review.

What is Maya Angelou Known For?

She has been awarded over 30 honorary degrees and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for her 1971 volume of poetry, Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Diiie.

Angelou was an associate of the Harlem Writers Guild in the late 1950s, and served as Northern Coordinator of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Since 1991, she has taught at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In 1995, she was recognized for having the longest-running record (two years) on The New York Times Paperback Nonfiction Bestseller List.

With the publishing of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou was heralded as a new kind of memoirist, one of the first African American women who was able to publicly discuss her personal life. Angelou's work is often characterized as autobiographical fiction. She has, however, made a willful attempt to challenge the common construction of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre.

Her books, centered on themes such as identity, family, and racism, are often used as set texts in schools and universities internationally. Some of her more controversial work has been challenged or banned in US schools and libraries.
In 2011, President Barack Obama presented Angelou with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. It is well-deserved recognition for Angelou's remarkable and inspiring career in the arts.

Why Did Maya Angelou Stop Talking?

Angelou has selective mutism, an anxiety disorder that makes the child unable to speak due to the psychological and physical trauma they have endured. In the five-year period that she experienced this, her observing, listening, and memorizing skills improved and her love of books expanded. This helped her later when she began working in becoming successful in her career.