Experiences of Marginalized Women: Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in Focus
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2012-05
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Experiences of marginalized women in America have been less studied since African-
American literature, unlike in the present times, was not taken as an integral part of American
literature. Though it gets better attention now, it is impossible to say it accorded the level it
deserves. Maya Angelou, who won Pulitzer Prize for her first volume of autobiography-I Know
Why the Caged Bird Sings, is one of the significant authors who talk loud in addressing blacks’
experience in America. This paper has attempted to explore experiences of African-American
women by taking Angelou’s novel in focus.
The foundation of the research is laid in chapter one; in the background of the study, the
statement of the problem, objective, significance, scope and methodology of the study have
been discussed. Trends of Afro-American literature were presented as changing from being
neglected into better status of concern. Autobiographies of black women have been ignored
more severely than the rest of writings in the world. Hence, by applying text based analysis, the
researcher planned to achieve the objective of exploring black feminine experiences in
America with special reference to Angelou’s novel.
To realize the objectives that are set in the first chapter, detailed explanation has been given on
the central concepts of feminist literary criticism in general and black feminism in particular
preceded by a discussion of local and global studies on the same area to the current research.
Studies have been made on different works by raising distinguished issues under the umbrella
of feminist concept. It has been confirmed that the current research is distinctive since it
focuses on the exploitation of marginalized women’s experiences set in in Angelou’s I Know
Why the Caged Bird Sings. By the conceptual framework of the study, discussions about
African-American literary history, criticism and its form of resistance together with the concept
of black feminism have been provided.
iv
In light of the theoretical concepts of Black feminism an attempt has been made to analyze the
novel under study in chapter three. In this part, the novel has been analyzed thoroughly to
explore dominant feminine experiences revealed in the text. Under the framework of black
feminist reading, the researcher has critically analyzed unique experiences of black women
from the rest of the world. Race, gender and class issues were the general brands of black
women’s oppression. Hence, racial prejudices against black women and the response to the
injustices have been discussed based on the nature of resistance from helpless anger to outright
protest. In addition, sexual abuse and segregation followed by ignorance and maternity have
been analyzed as interlocked oppressions of black feminism. The paper was closed by raising
key points of the study in brief. As it has been shown in the analysis of the novel under study,
Angelou was able to reflect the multiple oppressions of black women in America. Furthermore,
she indicated her feminist vision through the portrayals of optimist, thoughtful, kind and
faithful characters.
Description
Keywords
Marginalized Women: Maya Angelou’s