Table 1. Multilayered Chronological Chart: Maya Angelou.
| Childhood (1928–1940) | Teenage years (1941-1945) | Searching for escape/pleasure (1945-1955) | Travelling and self discovery (1955–1965) | The sense making years (1965-2014) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biographical events | ||||
| 1928: Born 1931: Moved to Arkansas 1933: First contact with parents 1935: Moved to live with mother 1935: Molested and raped by Mr F. 1935: Mr F. was beaten to death by Maya’s uncles 1935–1940: Selectively mute 1935: Returned to Arkansas |
1941: Returned to live with mother 1943: Lived briefly with father until she was stabbed by step-mother and lived on the streets for 1 month |
1945: Returned to Arkansas 1946: Returned to live with mother 1948: Guy kidnapped 1953: Death of grandmother 1953: Began to use the name Maya |
1955–1957: Moved several times within USA 1962: Moved to Cairo 1962: Moved to Ghana 1962: Guy was involved in a serious car accident 1965: Returned to USA 1965: Guy was involved in another car accident |
1966: Looked after Guy 1967: Returned to New York 1982: Moved to North Carolina 1990: Mother diagnosed with Cancer 1992: Mother passed away |
| Relationships | ||||
| 1945: Birth of son (Guy) | 1948: Dated an older man and agreed to work as a prostitute for him 1953: Married Tosh (marriage lasted 2 years) |
1961: Verbally married Vus (South African freedom fighter) 1962: Relationship with Vus ended |
1973: Married Paul de Feu 1981: Divorced Paul de Feu |
|
| Career | ||||
| 1940: Graduated top of her class | 1943: Became first Black Female Street Conductor 1945: Graduated Highschool |
1948: Worked briefly as a prostitute, along with other insecure jobs 1953: Began a career as a dancer |
1954-1955: Two year dance tour of Europe 1956: Worked as a singer, became interested in writing 1957: Joined Harlem Writers Guild |
1967: Decided to focus on a career as a writer Received many accolades, including: 1971: Nominated for Pulitzer Prize 1973: Acted in a Broadway Play 1976: Nominated for an Emmy 1981: Appointed Reynolds Professor in American Studies 1993: Recited poem at US Presidential Inauguration |
| Autobiography | ||||
| 1928-1945 I know why the caged bird sings (published 1969) | 1946–1947 Gather together in my name (published 1974) | 1945–1955 Singing’ and Swinging’ and Getting’ Merry like Christmas (published 1976) | 1952–1957 The Heart of a Woman (published 1981) 1962–1965 All God’s Children need travelling shoes (published 1986) |
1965–1968 A song flung up to Heaven (published 2002) |