I Know Why The Cage Birds Sing

Essay, Research Paper

Chris Coreypg. 1

I know Why the Caged Bird Sings

1) Setting .I.:

- Stamps, Arkansas, in a black ghetto neighborhood where Maya lives with her grandmother and paralyzed uncle

- St. Louis, San Francisco, a junkyard, and Southern California; A brief incident takes place across the border in Mexico

- starting from 1930.s to mid-late 1900.s, she was born in 1928

2) Character .I. 1: Primary Characters

- Maya. a black girl with nappy black hair, broad feet, and a space between her teeth; the narrator of the book; the novels based on her growing up.

- Bailey Johnson (Junior) – Maya.s older brother and a major person her life; he gives her advice, he.s good looking, intelligent, and mischievous; he loves his mother.

- Momma Henderson – Maya.s grandmother, she owns a black general store in Stamps; Maya and Bailey come to live with her when their parents get a divorce; Momma is the only black female entrepreneur in town. She is devoted to her religion.

- Vivian “Bibbie” Baxter – Maya and Bailey.s mother; a beautiful, smart, and willful lady; She is a trained nurse, but also makes a lot of money playing poker games in gambling parlors.

- Daddy Bailey – Maya and Bailey.s father; he is a vain, selfish,

and conceited man, who is not a good father.

Chris Coreypg. 2

3) Character .I. 2: Secondary Characters

- Grandmother Baxter – the children.s nearly white grandmother; she is a precinct leader

- Grandfather Baxter – dies a few years after Maya returns to Stamps

- Uncle Willie – Maya and Bailey.s uncle; he lives with Momma

Henderson; paralyzed since he was three

- Dolores Stockland – Daddy Bailey.s girlfriend; she is jealous of Maya and attacks her

- Mrs. Bertha Flowers – Momma.s sophisticated friend who helps Maya

find confidence through books

- Mr. Freeman – a past boyfriend of Vivian.s; he rapes Maya and is killed by her uncles

- Tom, Tutti, Ira & Billy – Vivian.s brothers; they are tough; they beat Freeman to death after he rapes Maya

- Daddy Clidell – married to Vivian; poorly educated property owner; Maya.s closest father head figure

- Viola Cullinan – Maya.s first employer, a barren white woman; her husband has two children with a black mistress; Maya hates her because she changes her name just for her convenience

- Joyce – seduces Bailey and breaks his heart by running away with a railway porter

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- Tommy Valdon – Maya.s first admirer

- Louise Kendricks – Maya.s first real friend

- Bootsie -leader of the junkyard community which Maya is a part of after running away

4) Conflict .I. 1

Human vs. Society

As a child, Maya had to live with her grandmother because of her parents divorce. After a long period of not hearing from her parents she neglects the fact that they even live. When they come back in her life, she doesn.t get along with them. Because of this she never really feels accepted by anyone.

5) Conflict .I. 2

Human vs. Herself

As Maya grew in age she suffered a lot of emotional damage due to her opposing views and unfortunate events while she was growing up. She was abandoned by her parents, raped at the age of eight by her mother.s boyfriend, living during a war, and being a black girl.

6) Plot .I. 1

- Maya and Bailey are sent to live with their grandmother Annie Henderson and her son Willie in Stamps, Arkansas.

Chris Coreypg. 4

- Momma Henderson sold lunches to the cotton laborers before they began their grueling work to be underpaid. People who stereotyped the cotton pickers as being happy and cheerful always enraged Maya.

- While black men had a very difficult time supporting themselves, Willie was paralyzed He tired to hide his handicap in front of two strangers, when Maya saw this it made her feel closer to him.

- The white former sheriff Mr. Stewart came to warn Momma that some white people were enraged because a black man messed with a white woman. Momma hid Willie in the potato and onion bins because they might take their anger out on him, luckily that was not the case.

- While Maya was insulted for her appearance, Bailey was always complimented. Bailey always protected her from the offending person.

- Three poor white children mocked came into Momma.s store and mocked her stance and gestures. One of the older girls did a handstand and showed that she wore no underwear. Momma did nothing but hum. Maya realized that she had done a good thing.

- Reverend Howard Thomas visits Stamps every three months and stays with Momma on Saturdays and delivers a sermon on Sunday. Maya and Bailey don.t like him because he eats better than them at dinner.

Chris Coreypg. 5

- Sister Monroe got overexcited in church and ruined Reverend Taylor’s suit while shouting “Preach it.” Maya and Bailey found it hilarious until Willie gave them a whipping.

- On Christmas, Maya and Bailey’s parents sent them presents. The children went outside to cry, wondering why they were sent away. Momma thought they were being ungrateful. Later they destroyed the blond, blue- eye China doll their mother sent her.

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