Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelouwas an American poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and was credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou is best known for her series of seven autobiographies, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, tells of her...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPoet
Date of Birth4 April 1928
CitySt. Louis, MO
CountryUnited States of America
I answer the heroic question "Death, where is they sting?" with "It is here in my heart and mind and memories.
Poetry and music are the best at the highest level of the human mind. Out of poetry, out of their need for poetry, human beings have developed the idea of God. And so when we sing, when we dance, when we speak poetry we are speaking out of God's mouth, each other out of the music from God's heart.
The most difficult thing in the world, it seems to me, is to realize that I am a child of God; to keep that in my mind all the time.
I don't think there's such a thing as autobiographical fiction. If I say it happened, it happened, even if only in my mind.
If you do not like anything, alter it. If you can not change it, adjust your mindset. Will not complain.
The most noble cause known to man is the liberation of the human mind and spirit.
When I write, I tend to twist my hair. Something for my small mind to do, I guess.
There is something more - the spirit, or the soul. I think that that quality encourages our courtesy and care and our minds. And mercy, and identity.
Hope and fear cannot occupy the same space. Invite one to stay.
remember this: When you cross my doorstep, you have already been raised. With what you have learned...you know the difference between right and wrong. Do right. Don't anybody raise you from the way you have been raised. Know you will have to make adaptations, in love, in relationships, in friends, in society, in work, but don't let anybody change your mind.
Our stories come from our lives and from the playwright's pen, the mind of the actor, the roles we create, the artistry of life itself and the quest for peace.
When a man tells you who he is...believe him.
I've still not written as well as I want to. I want to write so that the reader in Des Moines, Iowa, in Kowloon, China, in Cape Town, South Africa, can say, 'You know, that's the truth. I wasn't there, and I wasn't a six-foot black girl, but that's the truth.'
Courage allows the successful woman to fail-and learn powerful lessons-from the failure-so that in the end,she didn't fail at all.