Occupation Conductorette

March 31, 2014

Occupation Conductorette

Many important people write memoirs for a variety of purposes; to educate, to inform, to entertain, and to inspire. One such memoir is I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. The excerpt "Occupation Conductorette" from the work is particularly inspiring because Angelou tells the story of overcoming racial prejudice in World War II San Francisco during her quest to become the first African American female streetcar conductorette. Maya Angelou uses figurative language coupled with historical and personal experience to convey the power of persuasiveness of the text.

Angelou's use of figurative language is fully displayed to portray the determination she possesses as she faces challenges. Angelou states (81) "We were like actors who, knowing the play by heart, were still able to cry afresh over the old tragedies and laugh spontaneously at the comic situations." In this text, Angelou deftly describes how she doesn't take the discrimination she faces personally but rather saw it as a situation typical of her era. Hence, she finds it easier to tolerate and move on. Also when Angelou is talking about the clerk, she states (82) "I went further than forgiving the clerk, I accepted her as a fellow victim of the same puppeteer." Angelou describes how she doesn't blame the clerk for her discrimination because Angelou knows it wasn't necessarily her fault because these are the society rules. She also states (80) "From disappointment, I gradually ascended the emotional ladder to haughty indignation, and finally to that state of stubbornness where the mind is locked like the jaws of an enraged bulldog." As Angelou is faced with the challenge of

discrimination, she realizes that she is going to be whatever she wants to be despite what society is accustomed to. The figurative language Angelou uses throughout the text serves to creatively convey the force of her determination.

Angelous text is developed with a mixture of historical content and anecdotes combining logical and emotional appeals. (80) "They don't accept colored people on the street cars." Angelou's mother matter-of-factly tells Angelou that her color will prevent her from becoming a conductorette. While an accepted social practice it was not met with outrage by Angelou who refused to accept such bias. (81) "May I ask