ANALYSIS ASSIGNMENT: Paedeia Discussion Questions for "All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes" (Angelou)

Students, I have included these questions to help you think critically when reading and analyzing "All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes" by Maya Angelou. These questions and the responses are your own personal interpretations. Whether you agree or disagree, I hope they give you some direction in your own analysis.*

*NOTE: These are DISCUSSION questions. Therefore, there MUST be a considerable amount of DISCUSSION. No explanation or elaboration of your answer will result in the loss of points. You must have fully discussed the question before moving to the next question. ALL RESPONSES MUST BE SUPPORTED.

1. SOAPSTONE QUESTION: Who is Angelou’s intended audience? Is it a sophisticated audience or an un-sophisticated audience? How do you know? Have specific passages ready to use as support for your response.

2. SOAPSTONE QUESTION: Discuss the subject of this selection. Use examples from the piece in your response.

3. SOAPSTONE QUESTION: Discuss the tone Angelou uses throughout her selection. Find evidence from the piece to support your response.

4. SOAPSTONE QUESTION: Occasion refers to the circumstances surrounding the writing; occasion and purpose are intertwined. What might the occasion be that caused Angelou to write this piece? How do you know?

This question will produce both OBJECTIVE and SUBJECTIVE responses, so more importantly; you must be able to SUPPORT it with textually based information (you must be able to pull specific passages from the story (with page numbers) to offer as evidence.) THIS IS A HIGHLY IMPORTANT QUESTION…MASTERY IS ESSENTIAL TO OUR DISCUSSION.

5. What role does point of view play in Angelou’s piece? Could a different point of view have affected the way in which the reader understood the author’s purpose? Discuss specific possible alternatives. Have specific passages ready to use as support for your response.

6. Through intelligent SUBJECTIVE reasoning, make specific inferences regarding specific people mentioned in the piece (i.e. the woman carrying the bucket of water, Kobina Artey (the old man), Patience and Kwame Duodou.) Discuss their motivations, intentions, and possible faults. Be specific…support with text based information. After addressing this question, subjectively and objectively discuss what these people have in common. Do they have anything in common (other than being from the Africa)?

7. Angelou found a parallel, or similarity, between the people of Stamps, Arkansas, and the people of Dunkwa. In your opinion, why might finding a parallel between the familiar and the unfamiliar help a stranger feel at ease in a new environment? Explain in a SUBJECTIVE response.

8. Angelou has written, “The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.” What do you think she means? How might it apply to your own life? Have specific passages ready to use as support for your response. Remember: include page reference.

9. In your opinion, why did Angelou avoid Cape Coast? What questions might Cape Coast Castle raise for her? Is the castle a symbol? What specifically does it symbolize/represent? How does the symbolism affect the Angelou’s work? Does it impact the overall main idea/purpose of the piece? Provide both OBJECTIVE and SUBJECTIVE comments. Have specific passages ready to use as support for your response.

10. What do Angelou’s remarks tell you about what she values? How do you know? Please provide a detailed and specific commentary. Have specific passages ready to use as support for your response.

11 Discuss Angelou’s use of description in her piece. Address specific passages that indicate the use of description (either spatial or order of importance). Answer the following questions: What is the significance of the description? What impact does the description have on the reader? NOTE: YOU MUST INCLUDE SPECIFIC PASSAGES…BE READY TO RESPOND WHEN CALLED TO ANSWER.

12. SOAPSTONE QUESTION: Main idea is defined as the author’s reason or purpose for writing the literary work. What is Angelou’s reason or purpose for writing from All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes? Is it stated or implied? Which mode of development was most effective in establishing it? Explain.

You MUST be able to answer this question. This question will produce both OBJECTIVE and SUBJECTIVE responses, so more importantly; you must be able to SUPPORT it with textually based information (you must be able to pull specific passages from the story (with page numbers) to offer as evidence.) THIS IS A HIGHLY IMPORTANT QUESTION…MASTERY IS ESSENTIAL TO OUR DISCUSSION.

13. What effect does the discussion of Cape Coast Castle have on the mood of this selection? Why might Angelou have mentioned the castle both toward the beginning and at the ending of the selection?

14. Why might it have been so important to Angelou be seen as a Ghanaian woman? What unspoken reasons might Angelou have for not correcting her hosts when they misidentify her? BE SPECIFIC…USE EXAMPLES FROM TEXT.

15. Theme is often defined as the moral lesson that is presented within the selection. It can often have an inspirational or educational value that transcends the page.

What is the overall theme of this selection? What lesson, if any, might Angelou be attempting to teach?