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Maya AngelouA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
“Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1899)
Dunbar wrote the poem “Sympathy” while working at the Library of Congress. The context of Dunbar’s life and the metaphor of the caged bird signify a poem about the struggles of Black Americans. Angelou pays homage to Dunbar’s imagery in “Caged Bird” and in her most popular book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.
“Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou (1978)
Often considered one of Angelou’s best and most enduring poems, this poem transcends stereotypical body image and beauty ideals and empowers women with the message that self-acceptance and inner confidence are the keys to true beauty. Written in Angelou’s typical rhythmic style, the poem is most famous for its refrain “I’m a woman / Phenomenally. / Phenomenal woman, / That’s me.”
“Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou (1978)
Perhaps Angelou’s most powerful poem, this unapologetic anthem celebrates Angelou’s individual spirit as a Black woman. The poem intersects the power and history of Blackness and womanhood to create a feeling of pride, strength, and independence. In the poem, Angelou uses a series of questions and responses to showcase her resolve in the face of bigotry and hatred.
By Maya Angelou
A Brave And Startling Truth
A Brave And Startling Truth
Maya Angelou
All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes
All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes
Maya Angelou
A Song Flung Up to Heaven
A Song Flung Up to Heaven
Maya Angelou
Gather Together in My Name
Gather Together in My Name
Maya Angelou
I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
Maya Angelou
Letter to My Daughter
Letter to My Daughter
Maya Angelou
Mom & Me & Mom
Mom & Me & Mom
Maya Angelou
Mother, A Cradle to Hold Me
Mother, A Cradle to Hold Me
Maya Angelou
On the Pulse of Morning
On the Pulse of Morning
Maya Angelou
Phenomenal Woman
Phenomenal Woman
Maya Angelou
Still I Rise
Still I Rise
Maya Angelou
The Heart of a Woman
The Heart of a Woman
Maya Angelou
The Lesson
The Lesson
Maya Angelou