Sojourner Truth was born into slavery, but she later became a leading activist for women’s rights and racial equality after being freed in 1827. She performed her famous “Ain’t I a Woman” speech at the 1851 Akron Ohio Women’s Convention. Today, multiple versions of this speech exist because the original was never officially recorded. Each of these interpretations manipulate the wording and presentation differently to alter the overall effect of the speech. Two of these interpretations by Cicely Tyson and Maya Angelou have similar purposes but are very different in how they are presented. Cicely Tyson’s version was very dramatic and appealed to the pathos of the audience. Using her experience as an actress, Tyson was very lively in her
