Censorship is a tool used by those in power to oppress people and it is found in every situation where a power struggle exists. Albin & Stavans explain that “censorship is a feature of every hierarchy – be it capitalist, communist, democratic, etc. – where a few are in control of the information. So the question never is ‘Is there censorship here?’ but ‘What kind of censorship is to be found here?’” (Albin & Stavans 127). Schlesinger explains that the nature of censorship stems from the human instinct to suppress discomforting ideas (7). “People act to protect themselves against expression that, by articulating repressed urges or affirming new ideas or values, incites doubt, disturbance, disorder” (Schlesinger 8). Although book censorship has existed since the creation of print, it wasn’t until Pope Leo X condemned and publicly burned Martin Luther’s 95 Theses that a systematic method of controlling the flow of printed information was formed (Alter 16). The news of the act travelled across England and subsequently Europe. This Victorian attitude soon found its way to the United States where – as Schlesinger explains – “a moral urgency… impelled editors, writers, heads of circulating libraries, and publishers to scrutinize every work for indelicate references or overly realistic portrayals of life” (19). This concept of a “moral urgency” directly relates to the censorship of Maya Angelou’s autobiography.

Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, follows the format of what is known as a slave narrative. The slave narrative was used by African American slaves to tell their personal story to others in an effort to create a voice for their oppressed people (Bruce). Angelou explains her relation to her ancestors and the responsibility she feels in regards to them: “As a Black American I have wonderful precedents… I take inspiration from that magic which allowed Blacks brought to the United States in 1619, one year before the Mayflower docked, who underwent experiences too bizarre to be included in almost any normal history book, to survive. I suggest it is that ability to liberate one’s own self beyond the confines of the chains and the whip and the lash” (Angelou 40). Angelou’s autobiography follows the same theme of self-liberation. Not only does her book work to liberate herself, but it aspires to liberate others. She dedicates her book to “all the strong black birds of promise who defy the odds and gods and sing their songs” (Angelou).

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is the ninth most frequently challenged book in American Schools (Graham 26). The majority of these challenges come from parents who find the rape scene described in the book offensive (Sova 147). Moore explains the concept behind parents finding this censoring necessary and the potential harm it causes their children: “There are agencies at work to shield these unprotected children from books that might reveal to them the workings of their own minds and hearts, books that engender the agony of thought and the fearfulness of hope. If we cannot protect children from experience, should we protect them from knowing?” (Moore 306) Maya Angelou’s autobiography has the ability to be a valuable learning piece because it tackles the serious issue of sexual assault on a child openly and honestly. Schools that have decided to keep her book in their curriculum have instead opted to remove the challenged rape scene (Moore 309). By censoring the truths of Angelou’s journey, the learning piece is tarnished and the book’s value is diminished. James Bertolino expands “We live in a time when the issue of child abuse has almost become an obsession in our society, and it’s important that such a story be told honestly, without sensationalism, yet with enough palpable detail and enough insight so we, the readers, might begin to understand” (Bertolino 302).

Works Cited

Albin, Veronica & Stavans, Ilan. Knowledge and Censorship. New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2008. Print.

Alter, Ann Ilan. “An Introduction to the Exhibition.” Censorship 500 Years of Conflict. Ed.    William Zeisel. New York: Oxford University Press, 1984. 7 – 9. Print.

Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. New York: Random House, 1969. Print.

Angelou, Maya, et al. Ed. Gottlieb Guntern. The Challenge of Creative Leadership. London: Shepheard Walwyn Ltd., 1997. Print.

Bertolino, James. “Maya Angelou is three writers: I know why the caged bird sings.” Censored Books Critical Viewpoints. Ed. Nicholas J. Karolides, Lee Burress & John M. Kean. New Jersey: The Scarecrow Press, Inc, 1993. 299 – 305. Print.

Fort, Bruce. American Slave Narratives: An Online Anthology. University of Virginia. 6 March 1998. Web. 5 March 2012. <http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/wpa/wpahome.html>

Graham, Joyce L. Freeing Maya Angelou’s Caged Bird. Diss. Virginia Polytechnic Institute. Blacksburg: Newman Library, 1991. Print.

Moore, Opal. “Learning to live: When the bird breaks from the cage.” Censored Books Critical Viewpoints. Ed. Nicholas J. Karolides, Lee Burress & John M. Kean. New Jersey: The Scarecrow Press, Inc, 1993. 306 – 316. Print.

Schlesinger Jr., Arthur. “Foreword.” Censorship 500 Years of Conflict. Ed. William Zeisel. New York:Oxford University Press, 1984. 7 – 9. Print.

Sova, Dawn B. Ed. Ken Wachsberger. Banned Books Literature Suppressed on Social Grounds. New York: Facts on File, Inc, 1998. Print.