I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Essay

Everyone has ups and downs to their life. The high times and low times that make people who they are. In the book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou, there are many situations that shape Maya’s personality and contribute to the person she is today. There are many positive, as well as negative things which both encourage and impede her development.

Some plot situations which encourage Maya’s development start with her days in the junk yard. This time she spent living in a car helped her learn to be thankful for the life she has. As well as helped her appreciate the smaller things in life. Living in the junk yard also helped her gain respect for a broader range of people. For example, before her days in the junk yard, Maya was unsure if people

A final way which Maya’s development was impeded was when a local white dentist refused to aid her toothache because Maya’s skin was dark. This caused the slowing of her development because of her embarrassment towards her skin color during the incident. Maya also felt a great deal of hatred towards the dentist because of his crude remarks to her and her grandma. Infact Maya had a hard time understanding why her grandmother didn’t explode in anger towards him. She even imagined all the many ways her grandma could deal with his racism. Since this experience was one of Maya’s first real taists of racism, it definitely played a roll in slowing her development.

of the white race even existed. But after living, working, and developing friendships with many kinds of people, Maya’s tolerance for ot

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