Motherhood
Angelou themes this volume of her memoir around her son, Guy. Her primary challenge and responsibility of the 50s is the successful maturity of her son into adulthood. For this reason, Angelou makes a series of changes in their lives. First, they move to California, where Angelou rediscovers her love of writing. Next they move to NYC, where Angelou becomes involved in the Civil Rights Movement for the sake of her son. Through her work, she attempts to demonstrate the skills of dignity, determination, and strength for Guy. She engages in the politics of her era for her own sake, as an African-American woman who has experienced severe oppression, and for her son, as a role model of civic engagement and independence. She teaches him to look after those less privileged than him, in turn offering him an alternative to the gang life which threatens him in the city. Even in her marriage to Make, Angelou retains motherhood as her primary goal. She divorces Make in order to provide better for her son. Finally, she quits her job and moves to work at the University of Ghana and cares for Guy there during his convalescence. Although motherhood requires sacrifice, Angelou readily embraces the responsibility of her position.
Female Leadership
Angelou is a role model of competent female leadership. She surrounds herself (and her son) with powerful people and benefits from their influence on her life. For example, after meeting James Baldwin in New York, she confides in him her desire to seriously pursue writing. He agrees to become her mentor. Because she is a woman, however, Angelou becomes even more influential than Baldwin in her own right because she is setting expectations for the other half of the generation, whose potential is still somewhat latent in this turbulent era. Angelou governs herself according to unwavering principles of responsibility, love, and excellence. This is why her season of work in nightclubs and various other gigs which she accepts for the sake of provision and stability challenge her to become even more powerful in the areas of her life about which she is passionate. She sets her mind to something she wants and accomplishes it for herself, for honor's sake. Once more her resolute feminine authority remains her saving grace in her marriage to Make, who challenges her on every front, demanding submission which she will not give. Angelou remains persistent in the upholding of her values as well as her conviction that her gender cannot be allowed to hold her back on any account.
Personal Ambition
Angelou is an ambitious person, especially during this season of her life. With her son a teenager, she readily embraces the challenge of providing a stable and advantageous life for hime while simultaneously pursuing her own dreams. She does not allow challenge to discourage her but uses these momentary obstacles as opportunities to grow on a personal level. For instance, she hears MLK Jr. speak about the prevalence of racism, despite the nation's best efforts to eradicate it, and she decides to fundraise for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. She directs her ambition at raising a generation of strong black leaders in order to combat this racist bent at its source, rather than becoming resentful or combative. Similarly, in Cairo, Angelou does not allow her husband's irresponsibility to negatively effect her family as best as within her power. Instead she goes out and finds a job and supports the family on her own, through a period of intense difficulty in the home. Finally, she does not hesitate to divorce Make after he makes no serious effort to resolve their marital, financial, and political problems. She is determined to be successful in life and allows nobody to stand in her way; instead offering Guy a positive role model of how one balances ambition with honor.
