Laura Ingalls Wilder, Harper Lee, and Maya Angelou?

Question

For a project I have to find inspirational and important 20th century female authors, so I chose Laura Ingalls Wilder, harper Lee, and aMaya Angelou. I just wanted to know what some of their accomplishments were and how they made an impact on the public/were they inspirational in any way/ and what did their writing or them as a person teach other people. I know that Harper Lee was said to be Robert E Lee's descendent - was she prejudice against slaves at the time or no, because in her story her character defends a slave. How did Maya Angelou show her activism - how was she involved, what did she do? And last, what did Laura Ingalls Wilder's stories teach people to do and were there any ways it could have inspired them? These are kind of opinions, but please give sources if you have them. Thanks so much!

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

I've read books by Laura Ingalls Wilder and Harper Lee but it's been some time since I've been meaning to look up books by Maya Angelou though I have read about her life and her works.

Harper Lee, is known for her 1960 novel, To Kill A Mockingbird and she awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom of the United States for her contribution to literature in 2007. She was definitely not racist. In a certain way, she wanted equality which she voices through Scout's character in To Kill A mickingbird when she says that 'there is only one type of folks- folks'. Her story does not defend a slave because slavery was already abolished in the time she set the story. However, prejudices were very strong against the Blacks and many Whites felt undermined and wished to uselessly ascertain their supposed supremacy over Blacks. Through the character of Scout, she revolts against the unjust treatmet of slaves.

Maya Angelou was a feminist activist who with others of the same school of thought as herself tried to reimagine ways of writing about women's lives and identities in a male-dominated society. Beginning with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou uses the metaphor of a bird struggling to escape its cage described in the Paul Laurence Dunbar poem, "Sympathy", as a "central image" throughout all of her autobiographies.[18][86] Like elements within a prison narrative, the caged bird represents Angelou's confinement resulting from racism and oppression.[87] This metaphor also invokes the "supposed contradiction of the bird singing in the midst of its struggle".

Laura Ingalls Wilder is well known for her Little House series. She bases the stories on her own experiences of growing up and moving about relentlessly.Some time after the 1930's, Laura eventually ceased fiction writing and spent the remainder of her life writing about and promoting her philosophies of personal freedom and liberty. She became one of the more influential American libertarians of the middle 20th century. Her books were interestin in the sense that they were alive. The characters were so mapped out out as they could be identified with. The hardships suffered by Laura in the book only make her stronger and bond her still closer to her family.

I would suggest that you try reading as much as possible on the life and achievements of these three authors before you start your project. The more you know the better you will be able to write about them. Wikipedia is a good place to start. Here's the link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Just type in the name of the author at the end to get started.

Hope this helps!

Asker's Rating:

Asker's Comment:

Oh my gosh! Thank you SO much! That was amazing! And thanks for not ciritzing me, like some others. Thanks again!!!!!!

Answer 2

There is a site that will answer all your questions in the world when you type it in.

I'm not sure if you have heard of it, but it is like the GOD of the internet, and it's name is GOOGLE.

Answer 3

Go here and get some basic info on each of them:

http://womenshistory.about.com/od/biogra…

get their books from the library and read them.

Your theory about Harper Lee is far from the truth. Tom Robinson was not a slave.

Answer 4

The best way to find out about these three ladies is to read some of their work. I would recommend Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. There is an excellent biography out now about Harper Lee, called Harper. And reading one or more of the Little House on the Prairie books should give you some insight into Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Don't cheat. Do the work!

On the racial question about Harper Lee, she definitely was not prejudiced. That's the whole issue being fought in To Kill a Mockingbird.

Read these books. Put yourself in these peoples shoes, and be moved and changed by them. That's the reason they are literary classics.

Answer 5

I know that Laura Ingalls Wilder's stories have moral/ethical backgrounds and may show people about right and wrong. It is geared more towards children, and there are very strong morals in her books. Plus, they are based off of her life and so teach children about our country's earlier stages and about Christian beliefs. I think Laura was inspirational.

Source(s):

Loved those books.

Answer 6

haper lee wrote the best book ever writing -to kill a mockingbird which won him a award.

Answer 7

First realize that slavery was over by the time Harper Lee was alive. Her book has no slaves in it. Anyone reading her book would have a hard time claiming she was prejudiced.