PoemHunter.com   
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou   
Search:     
Home Poets Poems Lyrics Quotations Music Forum Member Area Poetry E-Books
 
Maya Angelou
Poems   Quotations   Comments   More Info   Stats  
 
<< prev. poem Poems by Maya Angelou : 3 / 20 next poem >>
  
 
Share |

 
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

User Rating:

9.1 /10
(548 votes)



  The free bird leaps
on the back of the win
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wings
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings
with fearful trill
of the things unknown
but longed for still
and is tune is heard
on the distant hillfor the caged bird
sings of freedom

The free bird thinks of another breeze
an the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing

The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.

Maya Angelou


Share |


Read poems about / on: freedom, sky, sun, wind, dream, tree

 
  Comments about this poem (I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou )
Click here to write your comments about this poem (I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou )
 
  Taylor Marsh  (2/6/2010 8:28:00 AM)

captivating, you cant help but like this poem
  Sean Colliver-foster  (1/27/2010 9:19:00 AM)

Natasha I think you are spot on with your comment I strongly agree with you. This could actually fit as lyrics to a Bob Marley song. Right on Sister Maya! Power to the minority.

Its been a long time coming! ! ! !
  Natasha Phillips  (1/22/2010 3:37:00 PM)

this poem leads me to think of an enslaved african.......... what says u ppl? what comes to mind when reading this poem? ? ? ?
  Hanna Holmes  (12/8/2009 10:48:00 AM)

Background knowledge about any subject will hinder the ignorant critic. As they say, 'It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.'

**************************************

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is the 1969 autobiography about the early years of African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou. The first in a six-volume series, it is a coming-of-age story that illustrates how strength of character and a love of literature can help overcome racism and trauma. In the course of Caged Bird, Maya transforms from a victim of racism with an inferiority complex into a self-possessed, dignified young woman capable of responding to prejudice.
  Caiden J  (11/28/2009 5:35:00 AM)

I don't think she meant it literally, like many interpret it to be. Many people are held victim to circumstance or the vicissitudes of life and can no longer find the will to make it past the threshold. They are caged birds in mind and spirit, thus trapped within their reality.
  David Kostanty  (10/30/2009 12:51:00 PM)

I think it is time for 'Doctor' Angelou to mature spiritually and accept responsibility for creating her own reality.
  Howard 'the motivational poet' Simon  (10/17/2009 12:26:00 PM)

From every bird cage and every prison cell the desire of freedom reside. Excellently expressed
  Mark Buford  (10/12/2009 11:06:00 PM)

To Don Maker: I think MA is saying she knows why the caged bird sings, as well. Your comments are cynical in my opinion and narrow.
  Louie Levy  (10/5/2009 1:26:00 PM)

Dear Maya, We have kindred kind spirits for Birds, My having never forgotten my mother hand feeding her feathered friends from a small 4th story window-sill. I have some small, medium and large back yard bird feeders. No Caste conflict be tolerated. I even have a Squirrel enclosed feeder where there is no need to steel from their bird friends. Love Doves prove their Love, they share with all whom are smaller, without greed. Your poem for them is exquisite. I feel though, that maybe they sing of freedom or for their birth right for it.? Did you know that there are some minor typos to be edited, I am a nit picker so please know that it's possible through the Manage Comments tool bar. I've made this poem one of my favorites. Ratings are impossible to judge anything from heart and not a 1-10 fickle head.
Thanx, ...louie

Read all 47 comments >>
 
  People who read Maya Angelou

 
 
  Classic poets in PoemHunter.Com:

      The complete list >>

 
  Top 500 Poems

  1. Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou
  2. Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
  3. If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda
  4. Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
  5. Dreams by Langston Hughes
  6. i carry your heart with me by ee cummings
  7. I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You by Pablo Neruda
  8. Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe
  9. The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
  10. I Crave Your Mouth, Your Voice, Your Hair by Pablo Neruda
  11. Television by Roald Dahl
  12. One Inch Tall by Shel Silverstein
  13. Warning by Jenny Joseph
  14. As I Grew Older by Langston Hughes
  15. A Dream Within A Dream by Edgar Allan Poe
  16. Fire and Ice by Robert Frost
  17. If by Rudyard Kipling
  18. On the Ning Nang Nong by Spike Milligan
  19. Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes
  20. "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" by William Wordsworth
  21. Alone by Edgar Allan Poe
  22. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost
  23. The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes
  24. Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night by Dylan Thomas
  25. All That is Gold Does Not Glitter by JRR Tolkien
The complete list of Top 500 Poems >>
  Top 500 Poets

  1. Pablo Neruda
  2. Langston Hughes
  3. Maya Angelou
  4. Charles Bukowski
  5. ee cummings
  6. Shel Silverstein
  7. William Shakespeare
  8. Dylan Thomas
  9. Spike Milligan
  10. Billy Collins
  11. Emily Dickinson
  12. Khalil Gibran
  13. Sylvia Plath
  14. Dorothy Parker
  15. Elizabeth Bishop
  16. Ted Hughes
  17. Roald Dahl
  18. Robert Frost
  19. Walt Whitman
  20. Allen Ginsberg
  21. William Blake
  22. Edgar Allan Poe
  23. Mary Oliver
  24. Robert Browning
  25. William Wordsworth
The complete list of Top 500 Poets >>
 
 
  E-MAIL THIS PAGE TO A FRIEND
Found this page interesting? Recommend it to your friend!     Your E-mail:    Friend's Email:      
 

(c) Poems are the property of their respective owners. All information has been reproduced here for educational and informational purposes to benefit site visitors, and is provided at no charge..  About Us | Copyright notice | Privacy statement | Help
2/9/2010 5:11:45 PM. #.34# You Are Here: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Home | Poets | Poems | Free Poetry eBooks | Contests | Sites | Submit a Poem | Manage Your Poems | GameGar | Contact Us

Christmas Poems | Love Poems | Pablo Neruda | Death Poems | Sad Poems | Birthday Poems | Wedding Poems | Annabel Lee | Sorry Poems