In 1993, when Bill Clinton decided to invite a poet to read at his first inauguration ceremony – for the first time since John F. Kennedy invited Robert Frost in 1961 – he chose fellow Arkansas native Maya Angelou to write a poem celebrating the new beginning of his first presidency. The panoramic piece that Angelou composed, “On the Pulse of Morning,” reached millions of television viewers. Its popularity proved so great that it was published as a cassette and chapbook in 1993(Anderson 4). The work was distributed to schools, libraries, cultural centers, and bookstores nationwide (Shiflet 8).
             Appropriate for what Clinton promised would be a new era in American history, “On the Pulse of Morning” is a radiant piece that offers hope for the future by using good points of the past (Bloom 34). Angelou writes the poem using three objects of nature, “A Rock, A River, A Tree (Angelou 1), from which point she searches the distant past to provide answers for the present as well as advice for America’s future. Drawing different races, cultures, and religions together, the poem invites all of humankind to return to the foundations that made the country great, including basic values and an appreciation of nature (Bloom 40). Angelou calls upon ancient voices in hopes that “Each new hour holds new chances/for a new beginning (Angelou 5).” Maya Angelou’s works, specifically this poem, is complex in its themes, style, historical context, and its critical overview.
             The first theme in this poem is knowledge and ignorance. Written in the personae of nature as a teacher, “On the Pulse of Morning” offers a clear message of how America should prepare for the future. Beginning as early as the second stanza, the Rock offers an invitation to stand upon its back to face a distant destiny (Anderson 16). This intensified outlook offers a clear vision of what is o...