Character+List

Back to Home Page C h a racter Descriptions  **Maya Angelou** ** (Marguerite Ann Johnson)- ** Grows up living with her grandma in the very racist town of Stamps, Arkansas. By the end of the novel, she is living with her mother and brother Bailey in San Francisco. She is shown in the book as very optimistic and keeps her feelings to herself. She feels like she is an ugly person, and she tends to isolates herself from others and find alot of interest in books and poetry. She becoms confused with her sexuality, mostly about the thought of is she is a lesbian or not. She becomes pregnant at age 16 and gives birth to a baby boy.

**Bailey Johnson Jr**.- Maya's older brother. Bailey is the person that Maya is closest to all throughout the novel. Bailey becomes very attached to his mother, especially her physcial appearance. Bailey and Maya form a special relationship, always showing that they are there for eachother and support each other. Eventually, Bailey moves out because he feels he is mature enough to be on his own.

**Momma Henderson-** Maya and Bailey's grandmother that care takes for them on and off through out their lives. She owns a a general store in Stamps, Arkansas. She raises Bailey and Maya into respestful, polite, children.


 * Uncle Willie- ** Momma Henderson's son that is crippled son. He lives with Momma and helps her run the General Store.


 * Vivian Baxter- ** Bailey and Maya's birth mother. Bailey becomes very close with his mother and becomes obssessed with her beauty. Maya becomes close with her mother when Maya becomes pregnant. Vivian gets married to a man named Daddy Clidell.
 * Mr. Freeman** - Vivian Baxter's boyfriend while they live in St. Louis. He rapes Maya and is reported, but becomes cleared from his charges. He ends up being killed by an unknown source.

**Daddy Clidell-** Becomes Maya and Bailey's step father. Maya sees Daddy Clidell as her first father figure and as a good man.


 * Bailey Sr.- ** Maya and Bailey's birth father. He is never around during their childhood and he does not really form a relationship with either of the children. Maya thinks that he is a very selfish and self-centered man. He gets married to a lady named Dolores, who stabs Maya because of an arguement.


 * Dolores- ** Maya and Bailey's father's girlfriends, who does not like Maya and harms her because she thinks that Maya is taking Bailey Sr. away from her.

** Reverend Thomas- ** An elder pastor that vitists the Henderson family. Maya and Bailey dislike him because he forgets their names and eats all their food.


 * Baxter Uncles- **Tutti, Tom, and Ira, Vivians's older brothers, who are very tough and brutal. Uncle Tom comforts Maya alot because he helps her realize that her intelligence over rules her lack in physcial appearance.
 * Mrs. Cullinan- ** One of the women that Maya works for. Maya dislikes her because she calls her "Mary".
 * Mrs. Flowers-** The lady that breaks Maya of her muteness. She also introduces Maya to literature and poerty; subjects that Maya learns to love and enjoy.


 * George Taylor- **The widow of his wife, Florida Taylor. He visits the Henderson's house and mourns about his loss and his thought that he his being haunted by ghosts.


 * Louise Kendricks- ** One of Maya's first friends in Stamps.


 * Joyce- ** A girl whom which does many sexual things with Bailey in a tent in the backyard. Bailey steals many essencials and food from Mama's store for Joyce because she is poor. She eventually leaves Bailey and marrys a railroad porter.


 * Henry Reed- ** A boy who sings the Negro National Anthem at Maya's graduation. He is an important character because by singing the anthem at the graduation, Maya relaizes how important it is to be proud of her background and nationality, she bcomes less ashamed of being an African American.


 * Miss Kirwin- ** One of Maya's middle school teacher's that she remembers well because she did not judge her students based on the color of their skin.


 * Bootsie- ** The 'Leader" of the junkyard gang, he is the first person to welcome Maya.

List of Character Names came from- [|Works Cited for Character List]