Introduction -- Biographical sketch -- The story behind the story -- List of characters -- Summary and analysis -- Critical views -- Liliane K. Arensberg on rootless-ness and stability in caged bird -- Susan Gilbert on Maya Angelou: the writer in the writers' tradition -- Carol E. Neubauer interviews Angelou about writing autobiography -- Elizabeth Fox-Genovese on breaking out of the cage of racism -- Onita Estes-Hicks on Angelou's redemptive view of the south -- Opal Moore on the courage to read caged bird -- Pierre A. Walker on blending artistic style with political message in caged bird -- Lyman B. Hogan on Angelou's characterization of male and female blackness -- Marion M. Tangum and Marjorie Smelstor on being caught in the gaze -- Siphokazi Koyana and Rosemary Gray on cultural and political influences on Angelou's triumph over racism and poverty -- Yolanda Pierce on resilience and Black motherhood -- Works by Maya Angelou -- Annotated bibliography.