Analysis: I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings

The world we live in today seems to dismiss the hatred and torture that African American people had to go through less than 50 years ago. In the nineteenth chapter of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, it almost seems like the author is allowing me to step inside the average day and situation that African American citizens had to go through. It’s kind of heartbreaking knowing that an entire race of people feel as though their lives depend on a boxing match. The desperation was all too vivid and the silent cries of this small group of people were all but ignored. In this passage, the author gave examples of what these people may have faced if Joe “the Brown Bomber” Louis had lost the fight. The author goes on to tell and what I understood as, that if this fight had been lost, another young man would be whipped; another woman would be attacked and raped, and one more man would lose their life dangling by only their necks from …show more content…
Southern African Americans were torn everyday between the thought of being enslaved again or tasting freedom for one more day. In this passage specifically, they were hopeful of a light that could’ve been taken away with one hard and perfect right jab. This passage really opened my eyes and allowed me to feel like I was there first hand. I’ve always been a fan of Maya Angelou and the better understanding she has given me of a history that we only know from words in a text book or stories being passed down through generations. As an American, the story of overcoming inequality has touched my heart and helped me to comprehend people’s ignorance over racial