caged bird poem analysis essay grade 10

Caged Bird Summary & Analysis by Maya Angelou

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis
• Poetic Devices
• Vocabulary & References
• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme
• Line-by-Line Explanations

"Caged Bird" was published in Maya Angelou's 1983 poetry collection Shaker, Why Don't You Sing? The poem describes the opposing experiences between two birds: one bird is able to live in nature as it pleases, while a different caged bird suffers in captivity. The latter bird sings both to cope with its circumstances and to express its own longing for freedom. Using the extended metaphor of these two birds, Angelou paints a critical portrait of oppression in which she illuminates the privilege and entitlement of the un-oppressed, and conveys the simultaneous experience of suffering and emotional resilience. In particular, the poem's extended metaphor can be seen as portraying the experience of being a Black person in America.

• Read the full text of “Caged Bird”

The Full Text of “Caged Bird”

“caged bird” summary, “caged bird” themes.

Oppression and the African-American Experience

• Lines 15-22
• Lines 27-38

Freedom vs. Captivity

Freedom as a Universal and Natural Right

• Lines 31-38

Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Caged Bird”

A free bird ... ... claim the sky.

But a bird ... ... throat to sing.

The caged bird ... ... sings of freedom.

• Lines 23-26

The free bird ... ... sky his own

• Lines 27-30

But a caged ... ... throat to sing.

“Caged Bird” Symbols

• Line 9: “narrow cage”
• Line 11: “his bars of rage”
• Line 15: “caged”
• Line 21: “caged”
• Line 27: “caged”
• Line 31: “caged”
• Line 37: “caged”

The Free and Caged Birds

• Line 14: “so he opens his throat to sing.”
• Lines 15-22: “The caged bird sings / with a fearful trill / of things unknown / but longed for still / and his tune is heard / on the distant hill / for the caged bird / sings of freedom.”
• Line 30: “so he opens his throat to sing.”
• Lines 31-38: “The caged bird sings / with a fearful trill / of things unknown / but longed for still / and his tune is heard / on the distant hill / for the caged bird / sings of freedom.”

“Caged Bird” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Line 1: “A free bird”
• Line 7: “and dares to claim the sky”
• Line 15: “The caged bird sings”
• Lines 21-22: “for the caged bird / sings of freedom.”
• Line 23: “The free bird thinks of another breeze”
• Line 24: “and the trade winds”
• Line 26: “and he names the sky his own”
• Lines 30-31: “so he opens his throat to sing. / The caged bird sings”
• Lines 37-38: “for the caged bird / sings of freedom.”
• Line 1: “ee,” “ea”
• Line 4: “e,” “e”
• Line 5: “i,” “i,” “i”
• Line 6: “i,” “a”
• Line 7: “ai”
• Line 11: “i”
• Line 12: “i,” “i,” “i”
• Line 13: “i”
• Line 14: “o,” “o,” “i,” “oa,” “i”
• Line 15: “i”
• Line 16: “i,” “i”
• Line 17: “i,” “u”
• Line 18: “u,” “i”
• Line 19: “i,” “i”
• Line 20: “i,” “i”
• Line 22: “i”
• Line 23: “ee,” “i,” “ee”
• Line 25: “o,” “a,” “a”
• Line 27: “a,” “a”
• Line 29: “i,” “i,” “i,” “i”
• Line 30: “o,” “e,” “o,” “i,” “roa,” “i”
• Line 31: “i”
• Line 32: “i”
• Line 33: “i,” “u”
• Line 34: “u,” “i”
• Line 35: “i,” “i”
• Line 36: “i,” “i”
• Line 38: “i”
• Line 1: “r,” “b,” “r”
• Line 2: “th,” “b,” “th,” “w,” “n,” “d”
• Line 3: “n,” “d,” “t,” “s,” “d,” “w,” “n,” “s,” “t”
• Line 4: “t,” “n,” “t,” “n,” “d”
• Line 5: “n,” “d,” “d,” “w”
• Line 6: “n,” “r,” “n,” “n,” “r,” “s”
• Line 7: “d,” “d,” “r,” “s,” “c,” “sk”
• Line 8: “B,” “t,” “b,” “t,” “s,” “t,” “k,” “s”
• Line 9: “w,” “n,” “n,” “w,” “c”
• Line 10: “c,” “n,” “s,” “s”
• Line 11: “h,” “s,” “r,” “s,” “r”
• Line 12: “h,” “s,” “s,” “r,” “d ,” “d”
• Line 13: “h,” “t,” “t”
• Line 14: “s,” “h,” “s,” “h,” “s,” “t,” “t,” “s”
• Line 15: “d,” “r,” “d”
• Line 16: “th,” “f,” “r,” “f,” “l,” “r,” “ll”
• Line 17: “th,” “n,” “g,” “n,” “n,” “n”
• Line 18: “t,” “n,” “g,” “t”
• Line 19: “n,” “h,” “s,” “t,” “n,” “s,” “h,” “d”
• Line 20: “n,” “d,” “t,” “n,” “t,” “h”
• Line 21: “r,” “d,” “r,” “d”
• Line 22: “f,” “f,” “r,” “d”
• Line 23: “Th,” “f,” “r,” “b,” “r,” “th,” “th,” “r,” “b,” “r”
• Line 24: “n,” “d,” “tr,” “d,” “n,” “d,” “s,” “s,” “th,” “gh,” “th,” “s,” “gh,” “tr,” “s”
• Line 25: “n,” “t,” “w,” “w,” “t,” “n,” “n,” “t,” “n”
• Line 26: “n,” “h,” “n,” “s,” “h,” “s,” “n”
• Line 27: “B,” “t,” “d,” “b,” “r,” “d,” “t,” “n,” “d,” “s,” “n,” “r,” “r,” “s”
• Line 28: “s,” “sh,” “sh,” “t,” “s,” “n,” “n,” “t,” “m,” “r,” “s,” “r,” “m”
• Line 29: “h,” “s,” “s,” “r,” “d,” “d,” “h,” “s,” “t,” “r,” “t,” “d”
• Line 30: “s,” “h,” “s,” “h,” “s,” “t,” “t,” “s”
• Line 31: “d,” “r,” “d”
• Line 32: “th,” “f,” “r,” “f,” “l,” “r,” “ll”
• Line 33: “f,” “th,” “n,” “g,” “n,” “n,” “n”
• Line 34: “t,” “ng,” “t”
• Line 35: “n,” “h,” “s,” “t,” “n,” “s,” “h,” “d”
• Line 36: “n,” “d,” “t,” “t,” “h”
• Line 37: “r,” “d,” “r,” “d”
• Line 38: “f,” “f,” “d”
• Lines 12-13: “his wings are clipped and / his feet are tied”
• Line 29: “his wings are clipped and his feet are tied”

Pathetic Fallacy

• Line 7: “dares to claim the sky”
• Lines 16-18: “with a fearful trill / of things unknown / but longed for still”
• Lines 23-24: “The free bird thinks of another breeze / and / soft through the sighing trees”
• Line 24: “ the trade winds”
• Line 26: “he names the sky his own”
• Line 27: “But ”
• Lines 27-28: “a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams / his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream”
• Lines 31-34: “The caged bird sings / with a fearful trill / of things unknown / but longed for still”

Juxtaposition

• Lines 23-30
• Lines 19-20
• Lines 35-36
• Line 7: “dares to claim the sky.”
• Line 8: “But a bird”
• Line 11: “his”
• Line 12: “his”
• Line 13: “his”
• Line 15: “The caged bird”
• Line 23: “The free bird”
• Line 24: “and”
• Line 25: “and”
• Line 26: “and,” “names the sky his own”
• Line 27: “But a caged bird”
• Line 28: “his”
• Line 29: “his”
• Line 31: “The caged bird”
• Lines 1-2: “leaps / on”
• Lines 3-4: “downstream / till”
• Lines 5-6: “wing / in”
• Lines 8-9: “stalks / down”
• Lines 9-10: “cage / can”
• Lines 10-11: “through / his”
• Lines 12-13: “and / his”
• Lines 15-16: “sings / with”
• Lines 16-17: “trill / of”
• Lines 17-18: “unknown / but”
• Lines 19-20: “heard / on”
• Lines 21-22: “bird / sings”
• Lines 31-32: “sings / with”
• Lines 32-33: “trill / of”
• Lines 33-34: “unknown / but”
• Lines 35-36: “heard / on”
• Lines 37-38: “bird / sings”

Extended Metaphor

End-stopped line.

• Line 2: “wind”
• Line 4: “ends”
• Line 6: “rays”
• Line 7: “sky.”
• Line 11: “rage”
• Line 13: “tied”
• Line 14: “sing.”
• Line 18: “still”
• Line 20: “hill”
• Line 22: “freedom.”
• Line 23: “breeze”
• Line 24: “trees”
• Line 25: “lawn”
• Line 26: “own”
• Line 27: “dreams”
• Line 28: “scream”
• Line 29: “tied”
• Line 30: “sing.”
• Line 34: “still”
• Line 36: “hill”
• Line 38: “freedom.”

Alliteration

• Line 1: “f,” “b”
• Line 2: “b”
• Line 3: “f,” “d”
• Line 5: “d”
• Line 7: “d”
• Line 8: “B,” “b”
• Line 9: “c”
• Line 10: “c,” “s,” “s”
• Line 12: “c”
• Line 14: “h,” “h”
• Line 19: “h,” “h”
• Line 20: “h”
• Line 23: “b,” “b”
• Line 24: “t,” “r,” “s,” “s,” “tr”
• Line 25: “w,” “w”
• Line 27: “B,” “b”
• Line 28: “sh,” “sh”
• Line 30: “h,” “h”
• Line 35: “h,” “h”
• Line 36: “h”

“Caged Bird” Vocabulary

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• Trade winds
• (Location in poem: Line 2: “back”)

Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Caged Bird”

Rhyme scheme, “caged bird” speaker, “caged bird” setting, literary and historical context of “caged bird”, more “caged bird” resources, external resources.

The Poem Out Loud — Video of Maya Angelou performing and reading her work.

Angelou's Life and Work — A brief biography of Maya Angelou by Poetry Foundation.

"Sympathy" — Paul Laurence Dunbar's poem, which inspired Angelou's image of the "caged bird."

Angelou at the Presidential Inauguration — A clip of Maya Angelou reading "Still I Rise" at the presidential inauguration of Bill Clinton in 1993.

An Oprah Interview — A video clip of Maya Angelou being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey in 1993

LitCharts on Other Poems by Maya Angelou

Harlem Hopscotch

Life Doesn't Frighten Me

On the Pulse of Morning

Phenomenal Woman

Still I Rise

When Great Trees Fall

Ask LitCharts AI: The answer to your questions

A Summary and Analysis of Maya Angelou’s ‘Caged Bird’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Caged Bird’ is a 1983 poem by the African-American poet and memoirist Maya Angelou (1928-2014). The poem originally appeared in Angelou’s collection Shaker, Why Don’t You Sing? The poem uses the image of a caged bird to explore issues of confinement, oppression, and restriction.

You can read ‘Caged Bird’ here before proceeding to our analysis of Angelou’s poem below.

The poem is divided into six stanzas. In the first stanza, Angelou describes a free bird leaping in the wind, floating through the air until its wing appears to touch the rays of the sun. She likens this to the bird ‘claiming’ the sky, like someone claiming a particular territory as their possession.

By contrast, the second stanza describes the caged bird which provides the poem with its title. This bird’s horizons are far narrower than the free bird’s: he (Angelou describes the bird as male) has been rendered almost blind by his anger at having his wings clipped so he cannot fly away. His feet are tied together to limit his movement further. All he can do is sing – so he opens his throat to do so.

The third stanza tells us what the caged bird’s song consists of. He sings in a frightened manner, about things he doesn’t know or hasn’t experienced (such as freedom, we assume) but which he longs to have. Although he is imprisoned in his cage, the bird’s song can travel beyond the bars of his cage and be heard on a hill far away.

In the fourth stanza, Angelou returns to the free bird, who, she imagines, thinks of the territory of the air and sky which he had claimed as his own in the opening stanza. This bird also thinks of the worms waiting for him on a lawn somewhere, which he will be able to eat.

The fifth stanza once again contrasts this free bird’s existence with that of the caged bird. The caged bird stands upon a grave which represents the death of dreams (for instance, of a better life, such as that enjoyed by the free bird). The bird’s shadow is cast upon the wall behind it where it stands in its caged, its feet tied and wings clipped, and it once again prepares to sing.

The sixth and final stanza is a word-for-word repetition of the poem’s third stanza, in which the caged bird sings in a frightened manner, about things he doesn’t know or hasn’t experienced but which he longs to have. Although he is imprisoned in his cage, the bird’s song can travel beyond the bars of his cage and be heard on a hill far away.

In this poem, Maya Angelou gives voice to a common theme of the American Civil Rights movement : the longing for freedom and equality. The free bird is able to live as a free agent, and has dominion over the sky that is his natural habitat. By contrast, the caged bird is bound and his wings are clipped to restrict his movements, so he cannot live the life he was born to live.

Angelou’s contrast and juxtaposition between the free and caged birds offers a powerful metaphor, or analogy, for the struggle of African Americans to win their freedom: freedom from discrimination and oppression, and freedom to live as white Americans live.

Twenty years before she published ‘Caged Bird’, Maya Angelou had been an important participant in the Civil Rights struggle. One of the most rousing moments of the struggle came in 1963, the year of the march on Washington , which saw some 210,000 African Americans gather at the Washington Monument before marching to the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., the US capital.

They were marching for several reasons, including jobs, but the main reason was freedom: King and many other Civil Rights leaders sought to remove segregation of black and white Americans and to ensure black Americans were treated the same as white Americans. 1963 was the centenary of the Emancipation Proclamation , in which then US President Abraham Lincoln (1809-65) had freed the African slaves in the United States in 1863.

Slavery was now a thing of the past in the US, but a century on from the abolition of slavery, Black Americans were still not free in many respects. This is something Martin Luther King addressed in his memorable ‘I Have a Dream’ speech delivered that day at the Lincoln Memorial. In his speech, King outlined a dream or aspiration in which America was no longer a nation divided by racial segregation and discrimination, and African Americans were truly free, not just by being freed from slavery, but by being recognised as equal in the eyes of the nation’s laws.

Angelou’s reference to the ‘grave of dreams’ in the fifth stanza of her poem may even be intended as an allusion to King, whose ‘dream’ of racial equality had still not been fully realised. King himself was dead, having been assassinated in 1968. Did the dream of an equal society die with King, Angelou seems to ask? Is it with King in his grave?

Angelou does not make the birds ‘white’ and ‘black’, with the caged bird being the latter (unlike, say, Paul McCartney’s song, ‘ Blackbird ’, about the Civil Rights movement). And through resisting such reductive symbolism, she allows ‘Caged Bird’ to resonate as both a poem about racial inequality in the US and a more universal statement about inequality of all kinds, whether caused by race, class, or some other factor.

There are just two things which define the caged bird: the fact that he is caged and tied and unable to fly, and the fact that he can sing. In other words, he has a voice, as Martin Luther King had a voice back in Washington in 1963. And through singing, he can draw attention to his plight and the injustice of his condition. Perhaps Angelou is also recalling William Blake’s memorable couplet from his ‘ Auguries of Innocence ’:

A Robin Red breast in a Cage Puts all Heaven in a Rage

Angelou’s poem is not strictly in free verse , because she utilises rhyme at various points, and there is the ghost of a metre behind her lines. For example, the stanzas beginning ‘The caged bird sings’ are largely written in iambic dimeter, which involves two iambs per line. But the form is not stringently regular either, such as we’d find in a traditional sonnet, for example.

The poem thus combines freedom and restraint, aptly echoing, through its form, the plights of the two very different birds – birds who are, in the last analysis, not different at all, of course, but merely subject to very different circumstances.

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Analysis: “Caged Bird”

“Caged Bird” features an extended metaphor that compares the plight of the birds in the poem to oppressed people in the real world. Angelou’s entire literary career corresponded with her activism for social justice for Black Americans and for women, and this poem works as an activist message for both groups.

The caged bird metaphor is an allusion to a poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar called “Sympathy” (1899). Dunbar’s poem is also about the plight of Black Americans, and Angelou appropriated it for the title of her first autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings , which details Angelou’s early years navigating childhood trauma and racism.

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‘Caged Bird’ by Maya Angelou – Poem Analysis

Here’s part of an analysis of the poem ‘Caged Bird’ by Maya Angelou, tailored toward GCSE/IGCSE students but also suitable for those studying Angelou at a higher level.

Includes a breakdown of the stanzas, an insight into the context of the poem, and an exploration of the themes and deeper meanings. This is only a quick overview to help you get to grips with the poem; you can access a full in-depth breakdown of the poem below.

Thanks for reading! If you’re studying this particular poem, you can buy our  detailed study guide here . This includes:

• Story + Summary
• Speaker + Voice
• Language Feature Analysis
• Form and Structure Analysis
• Attitudes + Messages
• Themes + Deeper Ideas
• Extra tasks to complete by yourself

You can find the complete Cambridge IGCSE Poetry course by clicking here . For a limited time, our Cambridge IGCSE Poetry course is 15% off ; just use the code ‘ CIE ‘ at checkout! For all our English Literature and Language courses, click here .

“The free bird leaps

on the back of the wind..”

Maya Angelou

(Full poem unable to be reproduced due to copyright)

STORY / SUMMARY

The lyric poem makes a comparison between two types of birds: birds that are free, and birds that are caged.

Stanza 1 : When a bird is free it claims the sky by flying. 

Stanza 2 : When a caged bird is unable to fly because his wings are clipped and his legs are tied, he sings a song.

Stanza 3 : The caged bird trills for his sound to be heard from afar — and sings of freedom. 

Stanza 4 : A free bird thinks of nice breezes and times where the fat worms are ready to be eaten, and he calls the sky his own.  

Stanza 5 : A caged bird is tied and clipped, he has a “nightmare scream” that shows his suffering.  Stanza 6 : The caged bird trills for his sound to be heard from afar — stanza 3 and stanza 6 are the same, they are a refrain that repeats and underscores the ideas of the poem, the main idea being that a caged bird sings of freedom.

• The title “Caged Bird” suggests that while there are two subjects in the poem — the caged bird and the free bird — the former bird that is trapped is really the main focus. Angelou encourages both trapped and free people alike to listen to her poem and empathise with the plight of oppressed people. Those who are trapped may better understand their difficulties and lack of privileges, whereas those who are free may better appreciate what they have and work harder to free the oppressed.  
• The caged bird symbolizes African-Americans, who are desperately trying to get their voices heard by the American public. Even though African-Americans have a cage in front of them, their voices can be heard. African-Americans were treated differently in America, though they wanted to be equal.
• Civil Rights — a political movement in the mid-1960s that campaigned for African Americans to have equal rights and proper integration with white Americans. Slavery was abolished a long time before (1865), but since that time African Americans had still not been treated equally — they had to go to separate schools, ride separate buses and eat in separate restaurants. This was called segregation, and it led white people to still consider African Americans as separate from and inferior to themselves.  Though legally the African Americans were no longer enslaved, many argued that socially and culturally they were still ostracised and not at all provided with the same opportunities as other people in America. So, in the 1960s a lot of people campaigned to get this changed, led by political leaders such as Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. Support for this movement occurred in the US and around the world. 
• Angelou wrote the poem in 1968 , at a time when the Civil Rights Movement was gaining power and the social oppression of African Americans was finally starting to change. Her voice is one of many voices that collaborated at this time to encourage the emancipation of her people.

Maya Angelou’s autobiography is also called “ I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” , showing her strong connection to the poem — perhaps she views herself as a caged bird too and identifies with victims of oppression.

THEMES / ATTITUDES

Nature vs Unnatural

• The bird is supposed to be free and allowed to fly, and it enjoys life when it is this way. When the bird is caged with clipped wings, it becomes sad and can only find enjoyment when thinking of freedom.
• Angelou is suggesting that captivity and oppression are unnatural states for living things to exist in. The state itself leads to a change in behaviour and breaks the spirit and soul of the captive being. 

Freedom vs Captivity 

• Birds are supposed to be in nature and not in cages, and in the same way men are supposed to live freely, with equality of opportunity. 
• The state of freedom is a privilege, and people should appreciate what they have when they are not being oppressed or controlled by governments or social pressure. 
• Being set free and the need to be freed from constraints is the central idea of the poem.

Human nature and Creativity

• Humans are creative, expressive individuals and even in times of difficulty they can find moments of hope or positivity, such as the way a bird will sing when trapped in a cage
• However, it is not in human nature to enjoy, accept, or even get used to captivity — arguably, it is not in the nature of any animal to enjoy this. A state of freedom should be a given right to all individuals, not a privilege for some and an impossible dream for others. 
• The poem is a political allegory — though it tells the story of two birds, it is really a way of expressing the political systems and forces that keep some people in a state of captivity for their whole lives. 
• There is a positive and motivational political message behind the poem – there is no anger or resentment towards the “free bird”, i.e. the white people, instead there is just a desire to be free like them. 
• The poem explores the way in which racial inequality can lead to oppression and lack of opportunity within societies that do not encourage racial integration. 
• The “bird” in the cage and “bird” in the sky are the same, perhaps suggesting that Angelou feels we are all the same species and should get along as equals.

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Caged Bird Analysis Essay

“Caged Bird” is a poem by Maya Angelou that tells the story of a bird who is trapped and cannot fly free. The bird represents all those who are oppressed and feel like they can never be truly free. Angelou’s powerful words inspire hope and show that it is possible to break free from oppression. This poem is a classic example of Angelou’s work which often deals with themes of race, identity, and injustice.

“Caged Bird” is a poem by Maya Angelou, which was published in 1983 and describes people of her race as the caged bird while the other bird represents white supremacy. During Maya Angelou’s childhood, African Americans were subjected to prejudice and a variety of challenges. The only logical option for these individuals to defend themselves was through speech. To demonstrate how African Americans strived for liberty even when their rulers did not listen to them, Angelou employs repetition.

Furthermore, the use of literary devices such as allusion, simile, and metaphors are used to enhance the message being sent across. In conclusion, Caged Bird is a poem that will make people think about how African Americans were feeling during Maya Angelou’s time and even now.”

“His wings are cut short and his toes are bound, so he opens his throat to sing.”(Angelou) The writer is implying that the bird is being held back but nevertheless has a voice. In order to draw attention to a certain situation, expressing the obvious disrespect was the only option in this period of time.

“The caged African American “stalks down his cramped cage,” which prevents him from seeing much beyond his rage-filled bars” (Angelou) is suggesting that Americans of African descent are furious because they have and continue to live through this tragedy.

They were put in cages, comparable to being slaves and didn’t have any voice or power. The Caged bird “sings of freedom” because he/she longs for it. This poem is very symbolic because it’s not only about the physical restraints of a caged bird, but also about how African Americans felt during that time, which was trapped and unspoken for.

Caged Bird is a poem about, as the title suggests, a caged bird. But this isn’t just any old bird – this bird represents African Americans and the struggles they faced during Maya Angelou’s lifetime (and even today). The poem starts with the image of the bird being caged and unable to fly. This represents the physical restraints that were placed on African Americans, both before and during Angelou’s lifetime.

But it also represents the mental and emotional restraints that kept them from speaking out against their oppression. The bird is forced to sing of freedom, because that is what he longs for. But even though he knows freedom is out there, he can never reach it. This poem is a powerful symbol of the African American experience and the struggle for equality.

People have always believed that black people are different from the rest of society. She, Maya Angelou, was someone who hoped for a better result from the circumstances faced by African Americans. The caged bird’s voice has a greater significance because it emerges out of pain yet still retains one thing that can’t be taken away: its voice.

The Caged Bird is a poem about the struggles of African Americans and how they are forced to live in a society that does not see them as equal. The poem is also about how African Americans have to fight for their freedom and rights. Maya Angelou was an African American poet, author, and civil rights activist. She was born on April 4th, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri. Her real name is Marguerite Annie Johnson.

She has written many books, including her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969). In this poem, she uses the metaphor of a caged bird to describe the experience of being black in America. The bird is caged because it is different from the other birds. It is not free to fly or sing like the other birds. The bird is also Caught in a cycle of pain and suffering.

But despite all of this, the bird still has its voice. It can still sing. And it uses its voice to express its joy, hope, and defiance. Even though the bird is caged, it is still free in its own way. This poem is about the strength and resilience of African Americans in the face of oppression. It is also about how African Americans have always used their voices to fight for freedom and equality.

Blacks were persecuted because of their race, but they vocally demanded their freedom. Racial segregation is something that many minorities would prefer to never have existed, since it appears to be a step backward rather than pushing the next generation to achieve greater things. One of the most significant trends in order to make the environment more pleasant and loving is removing the mental barrier and attempting to understand other races.

“Caged Bird” is a poem about the struggles and inequality that African Americans faced during the years of segregation. The poem also speaks to the idea of hope, and how despite the struggles, there will always be a way to break free. Maya Angelou was an African American writer and Civil Rights activist who is best known for her poems and books.

Maya Angelou’s poem “Caged Bird” is about her own life, in which she felt like a caged bird because of her lesser rights as a white person. “A free bird leaps on the wind and floats downstream until the current ends and dips his wing in the orange sun rays, daring to claim the sky. But a wild animal that searches for traps with rage-filled eyes sees only his wings are clipped and his feet are bound so he opens his throat to sing.”

This poem is Maya Angelou way of showing how she felt during her life. Even though she was not able to do everything that she wanted in life, she still tried to make the best of it. “The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom.” (line 10-14)

Maya Angelou is trying to say that even though she was not able to be free, she was still able to sing about it and hope for the best. Caged bird is a powerful poem written by Maya Angelou that reflects on her own life experiences.

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Critical Analysis of the Poem 'Caged Bird' by Maya Angelou through the Theme of Freedom

This paper analyzes Maya Angelou's poem under the theme of 'freedom' through two literary devices: tone and choice of words.

Related Papers

saima Perveen

In this research paper, the researcher has tried to find out the image of black female depicted in Maya Angelou's poems. This research has been conducted by qualitative and analytical method because this research has not numerical data. After collecting data, the researcher has analyzed poems and supported by particular idea of feminist Sara Mills. The researcher has chosen only three poems of ‘Still I Rise’, ‘Phenomenal Woman’ and ‘Caged Bird’. This study has been conducted by the use of black feminism. This research gives rise to enhance the argument in literature studies particularly Black Feminism self-esteem. The analysis has explained that black woman’s different images are depicted in Maya Angelou's poems. In the first poem ‘Still I Rise’, Maya Angelou presents black female as a leader of the movement and challenges the society arrangement about black people. In the second poem, ‘Phenomenal Woman’, Maya Angelou describes a standard of beauty that beauty is not having beautiful face and slim smart body and thin lip. She says that a black woman can be phenomenal woman through her confidence and good personality and proud herself being black woman. In last poem ‘Caged Bird’, Maya Angelou shows underdevelopment of black woman due to tradition. As a coloured woman Maya Angelou raises her voice and says that soon, black people will be free. The present research concludes that author is presenting theme of hope in all above poems and she is a courageous black woman. Keywords: black feminism, Maya Angelou, identity and coloured women

Farah Nisar

African Americans also known as Black Americans or Afro-Americans, are citizens or residents of the United States who have total or partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa. African Americans constitute the second largest racial and ethnic minority in the United States. They are descendants of enslaved blacks of the United States.

SAIKAT GUHA

Shiva Amelirad_Shafiei , Leila Naderi

Abstract: The black female writers who have made a significant contribution to African American Literature knew that it was necessary to tell their stories which were influential in their struggle against the forces of domination in the American canon. Although Angelou’s poetry has a large public, it does not have the deserved esteem. This article explores the fact that Angelou, through her outstanding poems, illustrates the black female voice and expresses her criticism of discrimination and injustice. Meanwhile, she tries to create a culture to celebrate the notion that Black subject is beautiful and unique.

Dr.THAHIYA AFZAL

Angelou’s autobiographical self-narrative prose and resonant poetry echo each other interlinking the personality of the prose-writer and the poet persona together as one person – the dynamic – Maya Angelou. I know why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou’s debut as an autobiographer, is the dramatized narrative of racial and sexual forces as they shape the individual black female self (body and mind) in the ‘south of segregation’. Reading the black and female body in the text means exploring an ‘identity’ built on fracture, on the razor edge between silence and songs, death and survival.

Sadiqa B A T O O L Naqvi

Script Journal

This study aimed to find out the kinds of figurative language in the five selected poetries of Maya Angelou, the titles are: Alone, Caged Bird, Old Folks Laugh, Phenomenal Woman, Still I Rise. The focus of this study is figurative language which involves

Gholnecsar "Gholdy" Muhammad

PADMORE AGBEMABIESE

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by Maya Angelou

Caged bird quotes and analysis.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still Speaker, Stanza 3

In this passage, the speaker of "Caged Bird" uses auditory imagery to describe the caged bird's song as having a "fearful trill." The speaker attributes fear to the bird's trill—a sustained warbling sound—because the speaker imagines the bird is frightened of the world beyond its cage. But despite the fact that the freedom the bird craves is by its nature composed of "things unknown," the bird longs for that freedom nonetheless. The passage is significant because it highlights the paradox of the caged bird longing for something it fears and has never known. The bird's longing is explained in that the bird, as an animal that has evolved to fly freely through the sky, feels a natural inclination in its soul to be free. In terms of meter, Angelou uses iambic dimeter, which she breaks in the second line ("with a fearful trill") by adding a fifth syllable. The effect of suddenly accelerating the established rhythm is that the meter emphasizes the "fearful trill" being described.

and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom. Speaker, Stanza 3

The continuation of the third stanza—the entirety of which is repeated as the sixth stanza—draws out the description of the caged bird's song. By using enjambment to continue a single sentence over eight lines, Angelou models in her language the way the bird's song stretches as far as "the distant hill." The passage is significant because the freedom attributed to the bird's song contrasts with the fear the speaker earlier ascribes to it. With this contrast, Angelou shows how the bird's song can be a song of lament and longing while simultaneously being a song that expresses the freedom in the bird's soul. Even though the bird is confined by his material circumstances, his song transcends the space to which his body is confined.

The free bird thinks of another breeze and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn and he names the sky his own Speaker, Stanza 4

Returning to the free bird's perspective, the speaker juxtaposes the caged bird singing his song of freedom with the free bird's untroubled thoughts of breezes to glide on and juicy worms that await him on lawns. Immersed in his plentiful world, the free bird "names the sky his own," a line that reveals the speaker's attribution of entitlement to the free bird. The line is significant because it speaks to the free bird's unconscious entitlement to his privilege as a being whose desires are not restrained. The passage contributes to the allegorical interpretation that the free bird represents white Americans who feel entitled to the privileges that the U.S. economy and government have granted them.

Caged Bird Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Caged Bird is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

The free bird can claim the sky: a metaphor for free blacks in the United States, while a caged bird is in his 'bar of rage' . The caged bird represents oppressed blacks in the United States.

Symbolic structure of caged bird

The caged bird’s song is a symbol for the freedom he longs for but has never known. Confined to a cage, the bird uses the power of his voice to move through the airspace his body cannot access. Although the bird cannot fly, he can still express...

Through juxtaposing a bird who feels entitled to his freedom and a caged bird who longs for a freedom he has never known, "Caged Bird" presents an allegory for the difference between how white and Black Americans, respectively, experience their...

Study Guide for Caged Bird

Caged Bird study guide contains a biography of Maya Angelou, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Caged Bird
• Caged Bird Summary
• Caged Bird Video
• Character List

Essays for Caged Bird

Caged Bird essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Caged Bird by Maya Angelou.

• Maya Angelou & Protest Poetry: An Essay