She applied for the job several times, and was constantly rejected and insulted, then finally, she succeeded. By acheiving her goal, Angelou became the first black female street car conductor in San Francisco (Showalter 5). .
Two years later, Maya was at a very critical point in her life. She felt insecure about her looks and unsure of her sexuality. Angelou had no friends to confide in since she hadn't taken the time to make any. And, at one point she believed herself to be a lesbian. So one day upon impulse, she invited a classmate of hers to come home with her to have sex. "As a young woman I was afraid of my sexuality so I countered my fears by having sex"(Showalter 7). This resulted in pregnancy. She gave birth to her son, Guy, a month after she graduated from high school in 1945. .
Much to Maya's disappointment, life only got harder, and she soon turned to writing to ease the pain."Much of my work has hepled me to shooth the pain of the past"Maya said "And occasions like these convinced me that I had to take the pain and move on" (Bloom 19). .
One night while having dinner with Jules Fieffer, he convinced her that the story of her life was worth telling. She then had the courage to sit down and write I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. This book taught her how to shift through pain. Most of her works relating to her life, are autobiographical. It is needed to explain her internal struggles. In I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings she shows how hard it is to be both black and female. .
She always thought that courage is needed for hope. That helped her through many .
obstacles in life. After having dinner with Jules one book led to another and another, and thus began her career as a professional writer. "The unsettled life Angelou writes of in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, suggests a sense of self as perpetually in the process of becoming, of dying, and being reborn, in all its ramifications"(Ryan 13) .
