I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings Quotes

Life is going to give you just what you put in it. Put your whole heart in everything you do, and pray, then you can wait.

But a prayer that he sends from his heart’s deep core.

Few, if any, survive their teens. Most surrender to the vague but murderous pressure of adult conformity.

At fifteen life had taught me undeniably that surrender, in its place, was as honorable as resistance, especially if one had no choice.

Hoping for the best, prepared for the worst, and unsurprised by anything in between.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill, of things unknown, but longed for still, and his tune is heard on the distant hill, for the caged bird sings of freedom.

In Stamps the segregation was so complete that most Black children didn’t really, absolutely know what whites looked like.

Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with deeper meaning.

The needs of a society determine its ethics.

Children’s talent to endure stems from their ignorance of alternatives.

The quality of strength lined with tenderness is an unbeatable combination, as are intelligence and necessity when unblunted by formal education.

The world had taken a deep breath and was having doubts about continuing to revolve.

My mother said I must always be intolerant of ignorance but understanding of illiteracy. That some people, unable to go to school, were more educated and more intelligent than college professors.

If growing up is painful for the Southern Black girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat. It is an unnecessary insult.