![]() On the Pulse of Morning (1993)Īngelou recited this poem for the first inauguration of President Clinton in 1993, making her only the second poet to read at a presidential inauguration (the first was Robert Frost). But it won't be for singing.” The book also dwells on her relationship with her teenage son and the meaning and responsibility of motherhood. Billie Holiday sings ‘Strange Fruit’ for her, and tells her, "You're going to be famous. This was a key time for her: she became increasingly politically active, travelled the world, and met leading black figures such as James Baldwin and Malcolm X. It covers the years from 19, when Angelou was published for the first time. ![]() “Men themselves have wondered/ What they see in me./ They try so much/ But they can't touch/ My inner mystery….” Like all Angelou’s poems, one to hear read aloud, or to chant at moments of uncertainty: “I'm a woman/ Phenomenally./ Phenomenal woman,/ That's me." The Heart of a Woman (1981)Īngelou was a celebrated memoirist and poet by the time this fourth instalment of autobiography was published. Pretty women wonder where my secret lies./ I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size…” Ideals of beauty have only narrowed since Angelou wrote this jaunty celebration of female power which proclaims, loud and proud, that beauty is so much more than skin deep. Nelson Mandela recited it at his 1994 presidential inauguration. ![]() It’s both a public protest poem and an intimately personal statement, looking back to her ancestors’ struggle and confidently forward (“I am the dream and the hope of the slave… I rise/ I rise/ I rise”). “You may write me down in history/ With your bitter, twisted lies,/ You may trod me in the very dirt/ But still, like dust, I’ll rise…” This is Angelou’s iconic poem: a great shout of defiance that answers darkness with joy and despair with humour (“I laugh like I’ve got gold mines/ Diggin’ in my own backyard… I dance like I’ve got diamonds/ At the meeting of my thighs”). ![]()
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