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Maya Angelou (/ ˈ æ n dʒ ə l oʊ / ⓘ AN-jə-loh; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist.She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years.
- 1
- Memoir, poetry
- 1951–2014
- Marguerite Annie Johnson, April 4, 1928, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Mar 31, 2024 · Maya Angelou (born April 4, 1928, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.—died May 28, 2014, Winston-Salem, North Carolina) was an American poet, memoirist, and actress whose several volumes of autobiography explore the themes of economic, racial, and sexual oppression. Although born in St. Louis, Angelou spent much of her childhood in the care of her ...
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Why is Maya Angelou important?Maya Angelou was an American poet, memoirist, and actress whose several volumes of autobiography explore the themes of economic, racial, and sexual...
- What is Maya Angelou best known for?Maya Angelou’s first autobiographical work, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), gained critical acclaim and a National Book Award nomination. H...
- What were Maya Angelou’s jobs?In addition to writing, Maya Angelou was a dancer who studied with Martha Graham and Pearl Primus. She acted onstage, in films, and on television i...
- What awards did Maya Angelou win?Maya Angelou was awarded the National Medal of Arts (2000) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2010). She won three Grammy Awards for her spoken...
- Just Give Me A Cool Drink of Water ’Fore I Diiie
- “On The Pulse of Morning”
- I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
- Gather Together in My Name
- The Heart of A Woman
- All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes
- Wouldn’T Take Nothing For My Journey Now
- A Song Flung Up to Heaven
- Letter to My Daughter
- Mom & Me & Mom
Angelou published several collections of poetry, but her most famous was 1971’s collection Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’fore I Diiie, which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Other famous collections of Angelou’s poetry include: 1. Oh Pray My Wings Are Gonna Fit Me Well (1975), which includes Angelou’s poem “Alone,” 2. And Still I Rise(19...
One of her most famous works, Angelou wrote the poem “On the Pulse of Morning” for President Bill Clinton’s inaugural ceremony in January 1993. Her recitation at the ceremony marked the first inaugural poem reading since 1961, when Robert Frost delivered “The Gift Outright” at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration. Angelou went on to win a Grammy Award fo...
Angelou’s friend and fellow writer James Baldwin urged her to write about her life experiences. The resulting work was the enormously successful 1969 memoir about her childhood and young adult years, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The poignant story made literary history as the first nonfiction bestseller by a Black woman. The book, which made An...
Angelou’s follow-up to I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, this 1974 memoir covers her life as an unemployed teenage mother in California, when she turned to narcotics and prostitution.
Angelou crafted this 1981 memoir about leaving California with her son for New York, where she took part in the Civil Rights Movement.
A lyrical exploration about what it means to be an African American in Africa, this autobiographical book was published in 1986 and covers the years Angelou spent living in Ghana.
This inspirational essay collection from 1994 features Angelou’s insights about spirituality and living well.
Another autobiographical work, A Song Flung Up to Heaven (2002) explores Angelou’s return from Africa to the United States and her ensuing struggle to cope with the devastating assassinations of two human rights leaders with whom she worked: Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. King was killed on Angelou’s 40th birthday, leading the author to stop ...
Dedicated to a daughter Angelou never had, this 2008 book of essays features Angelou’s advice for young women about living a life of meaning.
In this 2013 memoir, Angelou discusses her complicated relationship with her mother who abandoned her during childhood.
Maya Angelou. An acclaimed American poet, storyteller, activist, and autobiographer, Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri. Angelou had a broad career as a singer, dancer, actress, composer, and Hollywood’s first female black director, but became most famous as a writer, editor, essayist, playwright, and poet.
Poet, dancer, singer, activist, and scholar Maya Angelou was a world-famous author. She was best known for her unique and pioneering autobiographical writing style. On April 4, 1928, Marguerite Ann Johnson, known to the world as Maya Angelou, was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Due to her parents’ tumultuous marriage and subsequent divorce ...
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Sep 7, 2013 · Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson in 1928 in St. Louis. “Maya” had been a nickname given by her brother. In her memoir, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” Angelou told the story of ...
Angelou died on May 28, 2014, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where she had served as Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University since 1982. She was eighty-six. Maya Angelou Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 4, 1928. She was an acclaimed author, poet, historian, songwriter ...
