Recently, I have been reading Michelle Obama’s memoir Becoming. Obama’s memoir is much more colloquial, while Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings has a poetic and well thought out tone. I assume that the tone will become more gruesome as discriminatory events occur in the narrator’s life. Both novels describe the experiences of African American women growing up in an oppressive society. So far, I enjoy Angelou’s use of descriptive metaphors to convey the importance of certain events on her life. The novel can be confusing at some points, as I wonder how much of the stories actually happened to the author in real life.
Maya Angelou’s immense imagery adds to her work in creating a livid picture for the audience. One of my favorite phrases so far include “greased with Blue Seal Vaseline and powdered with the Arkansas red clay”. Angelou’s use of descriptive wording helps shape the nostalgic tone of the story. Another powerful quote, “Wouldn’t they be surprised when one day I woke out of my black ugly dream, and my real hair, which was long and blond, would take place of the kinky mass that Momma wouldn’t let me straighten?”, highlights the characters insecurity regarding her culture. The quote is especially shocking considering that the narrator is already ashamed of her appearance at such a young age.
I agree that Maya Angelou is poetic in her language, but I think that her tone is also casual because of the everyday diction she utilizes with a hint of slang. The story can be confusing, especially in the beginning, but with some patience I am sure that we can both pull through. 🙂 I also noticed the insecurity she has with her appearance, and I find it sad because the societal beauty standards at the time made it pretty clear that one can only be beautiful if they are white.
I am also reading this book. I definitely agree that the nostalgic tone that Angelou creates is very intentional. It adds a special affect to the story in the sense where it really puts the reader in her shoes and takes the reader back in time. That paired with the descriptive quotes that she puts in the book amount to a very meaningful and symbolic story that allows the reader to take a new and more exposed perspective on what it’s like to deal with racial discrimination and the struggles that come with it.
Abby I totally agree with the way you describe Angelou’s tone, I felt the same way when I read the book. I had the same reaction when reading that kart of the story where she talked about her childhood being stressful and full of hardships. It really made me think how at such a young age Angelou had to think at such a high level or understand the society she loved in. Racism is a very prominent theme do this book but how old you feel about a young girl having to deal with such a topic at such a tender age? Overall I really liked the variety of vocab that you used to describe the way Angelou writes her memoir I think it does justice to the way she would have wanted us readers to perceive her writing.