As much as we like to think we forge our own identity, much of who we are is determined by external forces. Oppression is a powerful force in shaping identities in Maya Angelou's memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and in her poems "When I Think About Myself" and "Harlem Hopscotch." The exploitation, discrimination, and violence faced by African Americans in the mid-20th century cause Angelou's characters to have complex relationships with their identities. Starting in childhood, racism separates the characters from their black identities and limits their ability to overcome the dissatisfaction that comes with their place in society. Thoughts become the characters' primary way of expressing their anger toward racism. The community has the ability to rebuild the characters' relationships with their race, but, ultimately, self-acceptance becomes their greatest tool for resisting oppression. Angelou explores the effects of oppression on identity through the lens of the African American experience. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Portrayals of childhood illustrate the role of racism in shaping identity. Angelou uses childhood motifs and structures to convey how racism becomes ingrained in the minds of black children. In I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Marguerite's fairy godmother fantasy displays a self-loathing that stems from racism, "...I was really white and why a cruel fairy stepmother, who was understandably jealous of my beauty, it had turned me into an overgrown black girl” (Angelou 4). Marguerite does not simply wish to be white, but instead believes that whiteness is her true identity. This reveals the drastic effect of racism on Marguerite's view of herself. She is imprisoned in a constant state of self-consciousness that stems from her belief that she will never be adequate because she is black. Creating an imaginary white version of herself grants her momentary freedom: “In a society attuned to white standards of physical beauty, the little black girl cries herself to sleep at night because of her own inadequacy. At least she can get a temporary reprieve in the white man's impossible dreams” (Smith 365). a society full of prejudices; instead she blames herself. Self-consciousness follows Marguerite throughout her life, showing the immense impact that racism faced in childhood has on her sense of self. Just as Angelou uses the fantasy of the fairy godmother to show the effect of racism on Marguerite's childhood, Angelou uses the song-like structure in "Harlem Hopscotch" to show the effect of racism on the children of "Harlem Hopscotch." Lines describing the mistreatment faced by African Americans are intertwined with lines from a childhood song to show how children process racism: “One foot down, then jump! It's hot. / Good things for those who have it. / Another jump, now to the left. / Every man for himself” (Angelou 50). Children cannot understand the immense difficulties that racism will bring them. Creating a song to overcome these difficulties helps them understand how racism will impact their lives. The song gives them instructions to navigate their oppressive society. Because they understand how to play hopscotch, creating a game makes the prospect of facing a lifetime of racism more manageable for children. Because the development of personal identity begins in childhood, demonstrating children's internalization of racism and self-hatred highlights the rolesignificant that oppression plays into identity formation. The first-person narrative allows the reader to fully understand the effect of racial oppression on one's sense of identity. himself. In I Know Why the Caged Bird, “When I Think About Myself,” and “Harlem Hopscotch,” the characters live by the rules of white society to survive. These rules force them to suppress their feelings and frustrations, making it difficult to understand their true emotions. The speaker of “When I Think About Myself” conforms to the standards set by her white employers to earn the money she needs to live. In I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Marguerite lives in a segregated Southern town, where African Americans are expected to tolerate disrespect from even the lowest class of white society. “Harlem Hopscotch” provides a series of instructions that black children must follow to survive in a world plagued by racism and violence. Because of these rules, the characters' actions do not reveal the effect of racism on their identity. Instead, self-talk provides this insight. The lines "I say yes, ma'am", for business reasons. / Too proud to bend / Too poor to break, / I laugh until my stomach aches” (Angelou 26) shows how the African American speaker of “When I Think About Myself” is trapped by her circumstances. The disrespect she tolerates from her young white employer causes her emotional pain, but her financial situation and lack of opportunities for black women prevent her from acting on her frustration. The first-person narrative reveals the anger and disappointment she feels towards herself due to her inability to change her circumstances. Likewise, Marguerite cannot reveal her reaction to racism because of her place in Stamps society. Watching her mother's harassment by the "powhitetrash," Marguerite sits and watches silently from the safety of the store, but thinks, "I wanted to throw a handful of lye on him, to scream that they were dirty, disgusting peckerwoods, but I knew he was imprisoned behind the scene as well as the actors outside were confined to their roles” (Angelou 30 recognizes the role she is forced to play as a black girl in Stamps, Arkansas, and this compromises her ability to express her anger towards racism). through actions or words. Marguerite's role also prevents her from outwardly expressing the pride she feels in her mother's self-control in the face of powhitetrash's taunts. "Through her growing racial awareness, she is able to articulate her observations on the racism, if not out loud, then at least in her thoughts" (Lupton 62). Marguerite's thoughts reveal how every observation of racism impacts her personal identity, reinforcing her self-hatred or strengthening her pride in its darkness. The final lines of Harlem Hopscotch illustrate the speaker's ability to challenge the rules of the game of life simply through thought. “Both feet on the ground, that's it. / They think I lost, I think I won” (Angelou 50) shows that the speaker has not physically challenged the rules established by white society. “They think I lost” (Angelou, 50) conveys that to the outside observer, the speaker still appears to conform to society's expectations of them. However, the speaker's thoughts break the rules of the game and reveal a positive view of his own identity. The speaker's ability to find self-worth shows that he has not allowed oppression to completely undermine his identity. In all three works, the characters' true reactions to racism are best understood through theinternal dialogue. A community's reaction to racism has a powerful influence on individual identity. Angelou includes events such as the graduation scene in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings to reinforce this idea. They stand out because they deviate from the main plot and do not significantly alter Marguerite's transition from child to mother or her journey from Stamps to San Francisco. Their purpose is to show the importance of community in shaping Marguerite's character. Marguerite's graduation ceremony exemplifies the collective identity of Stamps' black community. Marguerite feels desperate after hearing the white politician's statements. “The white boys would have a chance to become Galileo, Madame Curie, Edison, and Gauguin, and our boys (girls weren't even involved) would try to be Jesse Owens and Joe Louis,” (Angelou 174). The politician's statements are followed by the unexpected singing of the Negro national anthem. The black pride shown through this action overcomes Marguerite's desperation: “I was no longer simply a member of the proud graduating class of 1940; I was a proud member of the wonderful, beautiful Negro race "(Angelou 179). This statement affirming his black identity is in stark contrast to the pain he displays moments earlier. This demonstrates the impact his community has on his self-image. Connecting with other African Americans replaces self-hatred with pride in her black identity. While not an actual protest against oppression, this community action shows Marguerite that she does not have to accept racism: "Here is the action from a member of the black community: Henry Reed's improvisation leading the audience in “Lift Ev” ry Voice and Sing”--which at the same time avoids an irreversible confrontation with the white oppressor and allows the black community to feel its own dignity and superiority” (Walker 100). community and Margaret as an individual. While this scene shows a community uniting in the face of oppression, “When I Think About Myself” shows a community destroyed by oppression third stanza shows the commonality of the speaker's experience in his community, "My parents can make me share my share, / I laughed so hard I almost died, / The stories they tell just seem like a lie, / They make the fruit, / But they eat the peel” (Angelou 26). By showing the effect of racism on the African-American collective, Angelou implies that the speaker's desperation grows not only from her own mistreatment but also from the mistreatment of her community. The speaker's broken self-image is, in part, a response to the way he has seen society treat his race. Personal identity changes dramatically, positively or negatively, in response to community experiences. After a lifetime of dealing with racism, the characters' ability to embrace their identities gives them the strength to tolerate the oppression they will inevitably face as African Americans. Marguerite's final and most concrete role in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is motherhood. The birth of her son marks her transition from a girl stuck between childhood and adulthood to a grown woman. “Just as gratitude was confused with love in my mind, so possession was confused with motherhood. I had a baby. It was mine. Totally mine. No one had raised me” (Angelou 250). Racism, sexism, displacement and sexual violence torment Marguerite throughout her development, leading to the complete collapse of her personal identity. However, physical possession of a child gives her new maternal identity the. /.