Mom & Me & Mom

Angelou frames independence as “addictive.” By 22, she lives alone with her son, Guy, in a rented room in San Francisco and has two jobs. She struggles to make ends meet, but her mother praises her efforts. They often have lunch together, and Angelou notes her mother is respectable in the Black community of San Francisco and even among some white people. Resolved to be independent, Angelou refuses to ask her mother for money and stops bad habits.

Angelou meets Mark, a Black man who dreamed of becoming a boxer. Mark had an accident and lost three fingers, which thwarted his plan. They spend time together, and Angelou finds him a tender partner, feeling “safe and secure” (83).

However, one night, he drives her to Half Moon Bay and accuses her of cheating. She laughs at Mark’s statement and he severely beats her, leaving her unconscious. He drives into the African American neighborhood, showing Angelou to bystanders. A woman recognizes her and calls Vivian. However, no one can identify Mark.

Angelou wakes up in Mark’s room. He cries, saying he loves her. He leaves to buy juice, and she prays. Later, Angelou hears her mother’s voice yelling at the landlady to break the door.