n the horizon, a theme that repeats throughout the poem in lines such as “lift your faces,” “lift up your eyes”, “look up and out upon me” and “look up and out/And into your sister’s eyes (Angelou 5)”. The metaphor of lifting one’s eyes to the light is deeply rooted in religious and philosophical literature (Anderson 18). One of the most famous pieces is Greek philosopher Plato’s theory that describes man as a being living in a cave, isolated and trapped in his ignorance (Cudjoe 21). The only knowledge that reaches him is the coin of light from a distant entrance, hardly enough to illuminate any writings on the cave walls (Cudjoe 22). For man to become truly “enlightened,” Plato suggests, he must move toward light and out into the brighter world of knowledge (Cudjoe 24). Angelou suggests a similar metaphor when the Rock warns “but seek no haven in my shadow,I will give you no hiding place down there (Angelou 1)”. In some cases “ignorance is bliss (Angelou 3),” a haven where it is easier to ignore actions than take the responsibility and burden that comes with knowledge. And the speaker makes the ignorance clear: America’s near past plays host to such issues as racism, genocide, world war, slavery, environmental destruction, and prejudice (Anderson 22). Americans have “Crouched too long in/the bruising darkness/…Facedown in ignorance (Angelou 1). The key to “a bright new morning,” Angelou proclaims, is to step out of our dark past and lift our faces, hearts, and eyes toward the light (Anderson 23).
             Another common theme in many of Angelou’s poems, prose, plays, and television documentaries is the value of pride even in the most desperate of situations. According to Angelou, a sense of pride is what sustains people when they are enslaved, harassed, humiliated, and degraded (Anderson 25). ...