The Life of Maya Angelou Essay Example for Free

The Life of Maya Angelou Essay Maya Angelou is a black female who had a tragic childhood, but fought through it and ended up extremely influential, prestigious, and successful. She spent her childhood being tossed back and forth between California and Alabama with her older brother. During her middle years she had to learn how to grow up fast and make a living on her own. American poet/writer Maya Angelou pulled through a difficult life to write beautiful poetry and stories to inspire and encourage her readers. On April 4, 1928, Maya Angelou was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She is the â€Å"daughter of Bailey and Vivian [Baxter] Johnson† (Maya). She had only one older brother, Bailey, named after his father. Her mother, â€Å"Vivian Baxter Johnson, worked variously as a card dealer, boarding house proprietor, and registered nurse† (Angelou). Her mother had three husbands but many lovers. Angelou’s father was Bailey Johnson, â€Å"a doorman and a naval dietician† (Angelou). After she was born, she and her family moved to Long Beach, California. It was there that her parents’ marriage ended in a divorce. â€Å"When she was three, her father put Maya and her four year old brother on a train from California to Stamps, Arkansas† (American 2). They went to live with Annie Henderson, their grandmother. â€Å"On the train they had tags around their wrists with notes ‘To Whom it May Concern’ explaining their names and their destination† ( American 3). Maya’s child hood was rough without her parents and she began to resent them. Her mother tried to have a relationship with her but she was not always very successful. One Christmas, â€Å"Maya destroy[ed] a blond-haired doll her mother had sent her but preserves the other gift†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (American 3). Not having a mother around was only one of the hardships she faced. Her grandmother owned a general store, but she was a black woman in a racist area. Angelou witnessed â€Å"economic hardship, murderous hate, and ingrained denigration† (Maya). Maya Angelou’s early years were not very happy, but they set the stage for the rest of her life. During Maya Angelou’s middle years she went back and forth from her mother and grandmother a lot. Tragically, â€Å"at the age of eight, Angelou was raped† (Maya). She had gone to visit her mother a little while after the divorce. â€Å"Maya was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. After the crime was discovered, Maya was forced to testify† (Angelou). Only days after the trial, the man who committed the crime â€Å"was found beaten to death in an alley†(Angelou). Maya began to believe that it was her fault that the man was killed so she stopped talking. The experience influenced many of her stories and poems later in her life. Angelou attended various â€Å"public schools in Arkansas and California† (Maya). Once Angelou began to speak again, she became actively associated in her education. â€Å"Maya was able to graduate with top honors from Lafayette County Training School in Stamps† (American 4). She then moved back to San Francisco with her mother. â€Å"She graduated from George Washington High School† (American 4). The high school was mostly white, but she made it through. â€Å"While still in high school she received a scholarship to study dance and theater at the California Labor School† (American 4). However, Angelou did not attend the school because she pregnant. She was very insecure about her body, â€Å"she thought that her large bones, small breasts, and deep voice indicate that she is a lesbian† (American 4). She then tried to make herself feel better by sleeping with a boy in the neighborhood. â€Å"Maya is a single young mother, yet still herself a child, a mother afraid she might harm her baby† (American 4). Angelou’s mother constantly sent her back and forth between California and Arkansas as they both tried to figure out what was best for the child. Angelou’s middle years were difficult, but would also influence her later writing. Maya Angelou’s adult life came very early for her as she experienced the trials of a young, unemployed, single, teenage mother. She and her child were â€Å"living in San Francisco with her mother and her [mothers] new husband† (American 4). Angelou was only 17, her son was still an infant, so she needed to find a job. She tried being â€Å"a busgirl and a cook at a Creole restaurant† (American 5). While working there, she thought she found the man of her dreams. But the dream quickly came to an end when the man’s  girlfriend returned from a long term trip. Angelou quickly moved on the next job hoping to make some money. â€Å"She became a nightclub waitress and met two lesbians, Johnnie Mae and Beatrice† (American 5). She quickly discovered that they were alcoholic prostitutes. â€Å"Maya convinces them to turn their house into a whorehouse† (American 5). Her brother, Bailey, advises her to quit, insisting that he will always be there for her. Angelou stays in California to raise her child but travels often. As a curious young mother trying to get by, waiting for the next chapter in life. In the early 1950’s, Angelou got married for the first time to a man named Tosh Angelos. She met him â€Å"when she was working as a salesgirl in a record store† (American 6). Tosh was a sailor who loved jazz, â€Å"but she was also bothered by what she senses to be the disapproval from others because of the interracial marriage† (American 6). Therefore, the marriage only lasted about three years. Soon after, Angelou became a dancer and a singer. â€Å"She performed in the popular west Indian calypso style at The Purple Onion† (Angelou). Angelou stopped traveling as much in 1960, when she realized that she could be a part of something huge. One Sunday morning, Angelou attended service at a Harlem church. Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was preaching, it then inspired her. â€Å"She decided to produce a play and raise money for King’s Southern Leadership Conference† (Angelou). In 1961, Angelou moved to Cairo, Egypt and remarried. â€Å"In 1963, after her marriage ended, she moved to Accra to be with her son† (Angelou). In 1966 she went back to California to continue acting, singing, and writing. She published her autobiography â€Å"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in 1970† (Angelou). Another highlight of her adult life was when she gave the presidential inauguration in 1993. Nevertheless, the trials and tribulations that she faced became an influence to many. â€Å"Angelou is most familiar to her international audience for her series of auto biographies† (American 1). She had five major autobiographies that reflected upon her childhood, middle years, and adult life. â€Å"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Gather Together in My Name, Singin’ and Swingin’ and Getting’ Merry Like Christmas, The Heart of a Women, and All God’s Children  Need Traveling Shoes† (American 2). I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings was published in 1970, it quickly became popular and got a nomination for the National Book Award. â€Å"It covers her childhood and adolescence until the birth of her son, when she was 17† (Angelou).

atomic bombing :: essays research papers

Nuclear war was brought about through the invention of the atomic bomb. The atomic bomb was first thought of in 1939. The Manhattan Project was devoted to researching and constructing the bomb (Serendipity: Manhattan Project para.1). Six years and 2 billion dollars later the Manhattan Project produced the first atomic bomb in history (Serendipity: Manhattan Project para.5). The bomb was tested in northern New Mexico on July 16th, 1945. The creators of the bomb watched the first detonation. One creator quoted from the Bhavad Gita saying, â€Å" I am become death, the destroyer of worlds.† The testing of the bomb in New Mexico was the first detonation, however it was not the last (Serendipity: Manhattan Project para.10). The atomic bomb was again set off in Hiroshima on August 4th, 1945. This time the bomb was used in warfare (Serendipity: Detonation para.1). Two aspects of these bombings were the injuries to the people caused by the bomb and the long-term effect the bombing ha d on the culture. There were three main kinds of injuries caused by the bombing: burns, mechanical, and radiation. The burns were due to the flash radiation of heat. The mechanical injuries were caused by debris in the air thrown by falling buildings, etc. the radiation injuries were from the gamma rays produced from the nuclear bomb itself (Avalon: Characteristics of Injuries para.1). Without exact numbers it is hard for experts to determine the actual death rate caused by each injury. Most would say that that majority of the deaths were caused by either radiation or mechanical injuries (Avalon: Characteristics of Injuries para.2). Two different kinds of burn were reported after the bomb, flame burn and flash burn (Avalon: Burns para.1). People that had any sort of protection or shielding around them were protected from flash burns (Avalon: Burns para.4). Japanese experts estimate that burns caused at least 50 percent of the deaths in Hiroshima. They say that most burn victims died instantly (Avalon: Burns para.5). The second form of injury due to the bomb was referred to as mechanical injuries. These injuries were cause by flying objects, falling buildings, crumbling walls, etc. People that were injured from these things experienced fractures, lacerations, concussions, abrasions, etc (Avalon: Burns para.1). The third and most talked about injury caused by the bombing were the radiation affects on the human body. Most people were expected to experience the affect of radiation seconds after the bombing.

Infant Observation

His parents are part of the Chinese Culture. He has black hair and beautiful big brown eyes. His little arms and legs are chunky. In proportion to his body his head seems to be bigger but It's not. 2) When I was doing my observation he was playing. Perception: 3) TTT mostly observes objects with bright colors about few seconds before he drops It to find the next curious object. When put down onto the floor he crawls right towards the toys, telling his mom that he prefers colors.As his mom move a toy In front of his face side to side, he follows It with his eyes and his head. When his mom play some music he turns his head towards the source of the sound and starts to crawl closer to the music. 4)No real regular actions to make his mom believe he Is In need of any special Item other than food when he Is hungry. Motor Development: 5) Blinking reflex-when his mom blow on his face his eyes respond by blanking. 6) I see him exploring his surroundings, at objects and feeling them. He Is cra wling, he an walk while holding onto furniture or he is sitting when examining a toy. ) He moves his head in a normal way. 8) He can reach sitting position alone. He does so by bending one knee and backing down onto his behind. 9) He grasps an object on right hand while holding his upper body with his other hand (left) onto the floor. He lets go of the object by dropping it at his side to grab the next. Cognitive Development: 10) To find out if TTT has a concept of object permanence his mom used the Pigged method. His mom shoved TTT a toy and then his mom covered it with a blanket. He grabbed the blanket off the toy.That tells his mom has a clear concept of object permanence 1 1) Seniority activity -His eyes focus on bright colors and he responds to sounds by looking toward the sounds. Language Development: 12) When IT'S mom said â€Å"this is ball? ‘ and TTT looking at the ball. 13)TTT used babbling and single words to express his language he would say â€Å"bababababababaà ¢â‚¬  â€Å"tetetetetetetetete† deadheaded†. When he looked at him mother he would Sara†. I understand that there are many factors influencing the upbringing of children with ultra similarities as well as differences. All mothers encourage . Heir children to play and talk. Yet prior research have shown that U. S. Children learn object names more rapidly than children elsewhere, Even Chinese culture encourages people to see themselves in active relationship to others rather than separate individuals. Proportion to his body his head seems to be bigger but it's not. 2) When I was doing it to find the next curious object. When put down onto the floor he crawls right towards the toys, telling his mom that he prefers colors. As his mom move a toy in Ron of his face side to side, he follows it with his eyes and his head.When his mom crawl closer to the music. 4)No real regular actions to make his mom believe he is in need of any special item other than food when he is h ungry. Motor Development: 5) Blinking reflex-when his mom blow on his face his eyes respond by blinking. 6) I see him exploring his surroundings, at objects and feeling them. He is crawling, he 12) When IT'S mom said â€Å"this is ball? † and TTT looking at the ball. Infant Observation On Wednesday, July 19th, I had a chance to observe carefully an infant for about half an hour in my psychology class at Santa Monica College. The infant, Ali Osman is a healthy, playfull boy, appeared to be of Middle Eastern origin. He is 15. 5 months old, 32 tall and weighs about 24 lbs with brown curly hair, dark brown eyes and fairly tanned skin. 1. There were several kinds of toys like blocks, dolls, automobiles†¦ in the room. However, when he just came in, he was immediately drawn to the dolls with intense focus. Eventhough there wasn't any way to measure his heart rate or brain wave, I could easily tell how interested he was by the way he gazed, touched and played with the dolls. This could be explained by the fact that the perception of an unfamiliar stimulus usually elicits physiological responses (Berger, p. 156). Later, this explanation of mine for his behavior was confirmed to be correct by his mother that he had never seen a doll before. Clearly, he was sensing the strange object and trying to perceive it. And exactly as the text said, eventually, habituation occurs, in which the stimulus becomes so familiar and uninteresting that these responses slow down. (Berger, p. 156), he got tired of the dolls and began to pay attention to other toys and people around. 2. According to table 5. 2, the Age Norms for Motor Skills in Berger, p. 153, for his age of 15. 5 months, 90% of all babies master the skill of walking. Beside being able to walk, just like the majority of infants at his age (from 1-2 years old), Ali is quite a toddler, for the characteristic way they move their bodies, toddling from side to side. (Berger, p. 151). Still toddling but Ali obviously belongs to the upper half of the population in mastering his gross motorskill since he is also able to walk backward, a skill that only 50% of infant could master at his age according to again table 5. 2. 3. Ali is quite a friendly kid, he is not afraid to be with strangers proving by the fact that he could interact very comfortably with me, my classmates, and other babies. However, when there was some unfamiliar things happened, he always looked for and ran to his mother as described in proximity-seeking behaviors (like when the new baby twins came in or when someone made a scary face to him) (Berger, p. 26). He is a representative of secure attachment by showing that he had no problem with being away from his mother and exploring on his own (Berger, p. 228). Besides, he also reacted to the Strange Situation the way we expected from a secured child as stated in Berger on page 228 and table 7. 1, p. 230. 4. After playing for awhile, he came up to me w ith a book and showed me the content, then he gurgled something, clearly wanting me to read it to him. His intention was well understood. Without sufficient vocabulary, using only hollowphrases, he still has no communication problem, afterall, communication is about understanding not vocabulary anyway (Berger, p. 198). He showed clear signs of understanding his mother's commands such as up, down, kiss, bye†¦ by following them. His spoken language has been developed normally according to table 6. 2 in Berger, p. 194. One interesting thing was that when he was sitting in the chair and reading the book, he did not make any recognizable word but bla.. bla.. la†¦ , however, the way I see it, that was not babbling, he was probably pretending to read but he could not find any word that matched with the content of the book so he ended up with that one-size-fits-all babble. 5. At the age of 15. 5 months, Ali is falling into Piaget's stage five, the stage for experimentation and exploration (Berger, pp. 192-193). Piaget referred to the stage-five toddler as the little scientist who experiments in order to see. (Berger, p. 193). Ali is a very active, playful and curious boy. Just look at the way he studied the dolls at the beginning and how he played and discovered how to roll some round thing (I don't know what it was) later, you will see. And fitting the blocks into their right holes also shows that Ali is in fact a little scientist with his trial and error experimentation. 6. Ali is passed the age to be awe by peek-a-boo because he has achieved Object Permanence, the realization that objects still exist even when they cannot be seen, touched or heard (Berger, p. 181), as early as 4. 5 months old. As stated in Berger on page 182, to find a hidden object requires at least two abilities: setting a goal and knowing how to achieve it. , and a child will not have those abilities until he is at least 8 months old. Ali is way passed that so he could find something that Dr. Berg was trying to hide under a towel easily. He still enjoys this hide-and-seek game, but it is much less fun at his age unless the hiding is less obvious (Berger, p. 183). 7. Ali has a wonderful personality, which is the emotions, behaviors, and attitudes that make an individual unique (Berger, p. 16), or as least I think so for the following reasons. He is outgoing, assertive, active, easygoing, kind and helpful†¦. This characteristic puts him into the 40% easy-temperament (Berger, p. 221). With further observation, I can safely conclude that Ali belongs to the first two dimensions of temperaments in the big five, which are Extroversion and Agreeableness (Berger, p. 221). I cannot believe that I was able to see so much in a child the way the text shows in such a short period. I was particularly impressed with how incredibly secured Ali was, which shows through his friendliness, kindness and curiosity. In addition to his well developed cognitive skill (in communicating, learning, playing†¦ ), his general physical conditions as well as his motor skills are also astounding. I would be very happy if I could raise such a healthy child in the future. Finally, I cannot find any problem in your observation setup. Well, afterall, you've been doing this for years, I just don't see how I can beat that. Infant Observation On Wednesday, July 19th, I had a chance to observe carefully an infant for about half an hour in my psychology class at Santa Monica College. The infant, Ali Osman is a healthy, playfull boy, appeared to be of Middle Eastern origin. He is 15. 5 months old, 32 tall and weighs about 24 lbs with brown curly hair, dark brown eyes and fairly tanned skin. 1. There were several kinds of toys like blocks, dolls, automobiles†¦ in the room. However, when he just came in, he was immediately drawn to the dolls with intense focus. Eventhough there wasn't any way to measure his heart rate or brain wave, I could easily tell how interested he was by the way he gazed, touched and played with the dolls. This could be explained by the fact that the perception of an unfamiliar stimulus usually elicits physiological responses (Berger, p. 156). Later, this explanation of mine for his behavior was confirmed to be correct by his mother that he had never seen a doll before. Clearly, he was sensing the strange object and trying to perceive it. And exactly as the text said, eventually, habituation occurs, in which the stimulus becomes so familiar and uninteresting that these responses slow down. (Berger, p. 156), he got tired of the dolls and began to pay attention to other toys and people around. 2. According to table 5. 2, the Age Norms for Motor Skills in Berger, p. 153, for his age of 15. 5 months, 90% of all babies master the skill of walking. Beside being able to walk, just like the majority of infants at his age (from 1-2 years old), Ali is quite a toddler, for the characteristic way they move their bodies, toddling from side to side. (Berger, p. 151). Still toddling but Ali obviously belongs to the upper half of the population in mastering his gross motorskill since he is also able to walk backward, a skill that only 50% of infant could master at his age according to again table 5. 2. 3. Ali is quite a friendly kid, he is not afraid to be with strangers proving by the fact that he could interact very comfortably with me, my classmates, and other babies. However, when there was some unfamiliar things happened, he always looked for and ran to his mother as described in proximity-seeking behaviors (like when the new baby twins came in or when someone made a scary face to him) (Berger, p. 26). He is a representative of secure attachment by showing that he had no problem with being away from his mother and exploring on his own (Berger, p. 228). Besides, he also reacted to the Strange Situation the way we expected from a secured child as stated in Berger on page 228 and table 7. 1, p. 230. 4. After playing for awhile, he came up to me w ith a book and showed me the content, then he gurgled something, clearly wanting me to read it to him. His intention was well understood. Without sufficient vocabulary, using only hollowphrases, he still has no communication problem, afterall, communication is about understanding not vocabulary anyway (Berger, p. 198). He showed clear signs of understanding his mother's commands such as up, down, kiss, bye†¦ by following them. His spoken language has been developed normally according to table 6. 2 in Berger, p. 194. One interesting thing was that when he was sitting in the chair and reading the book, he did not make any recognizable word but bla.. bla.. la†¦ , however, the way I see it, that was not babbling, he was probably pretending to read but he could not find any word that matched with the content of the book so he ended up with that one-size-fits-all babble. 5. At the age of 15. 5 months, Ali is falling into Piaget's stage five, the stage for experimentation and exploration (Berger, pp. 192-193). Piaget referred to the stage-five toddler as the little scientist who experiments in order to see. (Berger, p. 193). Ali is a very active, playful and curious boy. Just look at the way he studied the dolls at the beginning and how he played and discovered how to roll some round thing (I don't know what it was) later, you will see. And fitting the blocks into their right holes also shows that Ali is in fact a little scientist with his trial and error experimentation. 6. Ali is passed the age to be awe by peek-a-boo because he has achieved Object Permanence, the realization that objects still exist even when they cannot be seen, touched or heard (Berger, p. 181), as early as 4. 5 months old. As stated in Berger on page 182, to find a hidden object requires at least two abilities: setting a goal and knowing how to achieve it. , and a child will not have those abilities until he is at least 8 months old. Ali is way passed that so he could find something that Dr. Berg was trying to hide under a towel easily. He still enjoys this hide-and-seek game, but it is much less fun at his age unless the hiding is less obvious (Berger, p. 183). 7. Ali has a wonderful personality, which is the emotions, behaviors, and attitudes that make an individual unique (Berger, p. 16), or as least I think so for the following reasons. He is outgoing, assertive, active, easygoing, kind and helpful†¦. This characteristic puts him into the 40% easy-temperament (Berger, p. 221). With further observation, I can safely conclude that Ali belongs to the first two dimensions of temperaments in the big five, which are Extroversion and Agreeableness (Berger, p. 221). I cannot believe that I was able to see so much in a child the way the text shows in such a short period. I was particularly impressed with how incredibly secured Ali was, which shows through his friendliness, kindness and curiosity. In addition to his well developed cognitive skill (in communicating, learning, playing†¦ ), his general physical conditions as well as his motor skills are also astounding. I would be very happy if I could raise such a healthy child in the future. Finally, I cannot find any problem in your observation setup. Well, afterall, you've been doing this for years, I just don't see how I can beat that.

Economic Policies Pave The Roadway For How America Operates

Main Themes Economic policies pave the roadway for how America operates. It determines the successfulness of the country or the downfall. When we look at today s biggest problems such as; social security, globalization, poverty, immigration, etc. there is a common theme. That is, that the state of our economy impacts all them. In the book, Crunch: Why Do I Feel So Squeezed (And Other Unsolved Economic Mysteries)? Written by Jared Bernstein, he delves into exactly how the economy can tie together so many aspects of our daily lives. He does a great job of explaining that ordinary citizens are affected by economics just as much as, if not more than, top leaders. The main themes that the book focuses on is why certain institutions like our healthcare system are failing. He also investigates why the middle class was hit the hardest by the 2007 recession. He concluded that economics is about power, and the middle class did not hold any. Another main theme he comes back to is that economics has been hijacked by the rich and powerful, and they do not have regard for the â€Å"everyday people†. Everything from tax cuts to rising educations costs was not done with the middle class in mind. However, they are the ones who are hit the hardest with it. The middle class is expected to keep up with trends such as obtaining a higher education, taking out mortgages for new houses and seeking out childcare. But, yet due to inflation, incomes are not being raised enough to meet theseShow MoreRelatedA New Economic Vision For America s Infrastructure4827 Words   |  20 PagesThe Way Forward A New Economic Vision for America’s Infrastructure May 2014 By Robert Puentes, The Brookings Institution Bruce Katz, The Brookings Institution Marc Lipschult z, KKR Raj Agrawal, KKR Summary Disruptive market, demographic, fiscal, and environmental dynamics are fundamentally reshaping America’s economic landscape. In this new reality, the United States should think of infrastructure not in the general but in the specific, understanding the ways in which different infrastructure sectors—suchRead MoreStrategic Role of Logistics in Kazakhstan21048 Words   |  85 Pagesas 25% out of total cost of final product while the world average is on the level of 11%. In China the logistics cost is 14%, European Union – 11%, USA and Canada – 10%. As a result Kazakhstan spends twice more money than developed countries. The economics of Kazakhstan is 5 times less effective according to the index of traffic load. So, each unit of GDP in dollar terms accounts on 9 tonne-kilometer of transport work, at the same time the load capacity in European Union is less than 1 tonne-kilometerRead MoreStrategic Role of Logistics in Kazakhstan21063 Words   |  85 Pagesas 25% out of total cost of final product while the world average is on the level of 11%. In China the logistics cost is 14%, European Union – 11%, USA and Canada – 10%. As a result Kazakhstan spends twice more money than developed countries. The economics of Kazakhstan is 5 times less effective according to the index of traffic load. So, each unit of GDP in dollar terms accounts on 9 tonne-kilometer of transport work, at the same time the load capacity in European Union is less than 1 tonne-kilometerRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 Pagesreproduced, with permission, in this textbook appear on the appropriate page within text. Copyright  © 2013, 2011, 2009, 2007, 2005 by Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Prentice Hall. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America. This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying