A Song Flung Up to Heaven
Encyclopedia
A Song Flung Up to Heaven, published in 2002, is the sixth book in African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou
's six-volume autobiography
series.
The 2002 spoken word album
by the same name, based on the book received Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
at the 45th Grammy Awards.
(1986). Angelou wrote two collections of essays in the interim, Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now (1993) and Even the Stars Look Lonesome (1997), which writer Hilton Als called her "wisdom books" and "homilies strung together with autobiographical texts". She also continued her poetry with several volumes, including a complete collection of her poems, The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou (1994). In 1993, Angelou recited her poem On the Pulse of Morning
at the inauguration of President Bill Clinton
, becoming the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost
at John F. Kennedy's
inauguration in 1961. Her recitation resulted in more fame and recognition for her previous works, and broadened her appeal "across racial, economic, and educational boundaries".
By 2002, whenSong was published, Angelou had become recognized and highly respected as a spokesperson for Blacks and women. It made her, as scholar Joanne Braxton has stated, "without a doubt, ... America's most visible black woman autobiographer". She had also become, as reviewer Richard Long stated, "a major autobiographical voice of the time". As writer Hilton Als
has stated, Angelou was one of the first African-American female writers to publicly discuss her personal life, and one of the first to use herself as a central character in her books. Writer Julian Mayfield, who called her first autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
"a work of art that eludes description", stated that Angelou's series sets a precedent not only for other Black women writers, but for the genre of autobiography as a whole.
Als called Angelou one of the "pioneers of self-exposure", willing to focus honestly on the more negative aspects of her personality and choices. For example, while Angelou was composing her second autobiography, Gather Together in My Name
, she was concerned about how her readers would react to her disclosure that she had been a prostitute. Her husband Paul Du Feu talked her into publishing the book by encouraging her to "tell the truth as a writer" and "be honest about it". As Long reported, "Song" took 16 years to write because it was so painful for her to relive the events she described, including the assassinations of Malcolm X
and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Angelou returned to the same poem she based the title of Caged Bird upon for the title of the final installment of her series. As she had done in Caged Bird, she used the third stanza of the Paul Laurence Dunbar
poem, "Sympathy". Along with Shakespeare, Angelou has credited Dunbar with forming her "writing ambition".
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou is an American author and poet who has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer" by scholar Joanne M. Braxton. She is best known for her series of six autobiographical volumes, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first and most highly...
's six-volume autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
series.
The 2002 spoken word album
Spoken word album
A spoken word album was a record album that did not consist mainly of music or songs, but of spoken material. It could be said to be the ancestor of today's audiobook format...
by the same name, based on the book received Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
The Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album has been awarded since 1959. The award had several minor name changes:*In 1959 the award was known as Best Performance, Documentary or Spoken Word...
at the 45th Grammy Awards.
Background
A Song Flung Up to Heaven (2002) is the sixth and final installment of Maya Angelou's series of autobiographies, completed 16 years after the publication of her previous autobiography, All God's Children Need Traveling ShoesAll God's Children Need Traveling Shoes
All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes, published in 1986, is the fifth book in African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou's six-volume autobiography series. Set between 1962 and 1965, the book begins when Angelou is thirty-three years old, and recounts the years she lived in Accra, Ghana...
(1986). Angelou wrote two collections of essays in the interim, Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now (1993) and Even the Stars Look Lonesome (1997), which writer Hilton Als called her "wisdom books" and "homilies strung together with autobiographical texts". She also continued her poetry with several volumes, including a complete collection of her poems, The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou (1994). In 1993, Angelou recited her poem On the Pulse of Morning
On the Pulse of Morning
On the Pulse of Morning is a poem by Maya Angelou. She read it at the inauguration of President Bill Clinton on January 20, 1993. With her public recitation, Angelou became the second poet in history to read a poem at a presidential inauguration...
at the inauguration of President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, becoming the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost
Robert Frost
Robert Lee Frost was an American poet. He is highly regarded for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial speech. His work frequently employed settings from rural life in New England in the early twentieth century, using them to examine complex social and...
at John F. Kennedy's
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
inauguration in 1961. Her recitation resulted in more fame and recognition for her previous works, and broadened her appeal "across racial, economic, and educational boundaries".
By 2002, whenSong was published, Angelou had become recognized and highly respected as a spokesperson for Blacks and women. It made her, as scholar Joanne Braxton has stated, "without a doubt, ... America's most visible black woman autobiographer". She had also become, as reviewer Richard Long stated, "a major autobiographical voice of the time". As writer Hilton Als
Hilton Als
Hilton Als is an American writer and theater critic who writes for The New Yorker magazine.Als is a former staff writer for The Village Voice and former editor-at-large at Vibe magazine....
has stated, Angelou was one of the first African-American female writers to publicly discuss her personal life, and one of the first to use herself as a central character in her books. Writer Julian Mayfield, who called her first autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is the 1969 autobiography about the early years of African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou. The first in a six-volume series, it is a coming-of-age story that illustrates how strength of character and a love of literature can help overcome racism and trauma...
"a work of art that eludes description", stated that Angelou's series sets a precedent not only for other Black women writers, but for the genre of autobiography as a whole.
Als called Angelou one of the "pioneers of self-exposure", willing to focus honestly on the more negative aspects of her personality and choices. For example, while Angelou was composing her second autobiography, Gather Together in My Name
Gather Together in My Name
Gather Together in My Name is an autobiography by Maya Angelou. It is the second book in Angelou's series of six autobiographies, and takes place immediately following the events described in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Written three years after Caged Bird, the book "depicts a single...
, she was concerned about how her readers would react to her disclosure that she had been a prostitute. Her husband Paul Du Feu talked her into publishing the book by encouraging her to "tell the truth as a writer" and "be honest about it". As Long reported, "Song" took 16 years to write because it was so painful for her to relive the events she described, including the assassinations of Malcolm X
Malcolm X
Malcolm X , born Malcolm Little and also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz , was an African American Muslim minister and human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its...
and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
Title
Paul Laurence Dunbar
Paul Laurence Dunbar was a seminal African American poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Dunbar gained national recognition for his 1896 "Ode to Ethiopia", one poem in the collection Lyrics of Lowly Life....
poem, "Sympathy". Along with Shakespeare, Angelou has credited Dunbar with forming her "writing ambition".
I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,
When he beats his bars and would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart's deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings–
I know why the caged bird sings.