It was once said that the title of a poem can capture the meaning of the piece better than the piece itself. This is the case in May Angelou's autobiography titled I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, about her hard life growing up as a black girl from the South. The title I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings uses the "Cage" as a metaphor, the "Cage" is what keeps people from succeeding in life and becoming what they want to become. In Angelou's memoir, she is the caged bird and her "Cage" is being a young black girl during the 1940's.

During the great depression Angelou lives in a prejudice southern town by the name of Stamps. Angelou and her brother Bailey live with their overbearing grandmother who they call Mamma after being abandoned by their parents. Mamma represents tough love in the memoir, forcing Bailey...