Which information is not in the article?
A.The name of the poem that Maya Angelou read at an inauguration
B.The topics of some of Maya Angelou's speeches
C.The event that took place on Maya Angelou's 40th birthday
D.The name of Maya Angelou's first album
D. The name of Maya Angelou's first album
NEW YORK, New York (Achieve3000, February 4, 2010). In the world of words, Dr. Maya Angelou is in a class by herself. She's penned six volumes of memoirs and mastered several languages. She's also published several volumes of poems and children's stories, and has composed music and plays. And Angelou has no plans of putting down her pen anytime soon. Although she recently celebrated her 82nd birthday, the author-poet-dancer-singer-activist says she is no closer to retiring than she was decades ago.
"I don't know why [I would retire]," said Angelou. "I've gotten a lot of work done, [but] not nearly enough. I don't know how long I'm going to live, but I still see my life as an adventure."
Angelou once wrote that when the road ahead is blocked, and the one behind cut off, then a new path must be created. And the writer has taken her own advice, leading a life that has not followed a straight path but detour upon detour. Her adventure began on April 4, 1928, when she was born Marguerite Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri. She was raised in Stamps, Arkansas, and San Francisco, California. Angelou moved back and forth between her parents and her grandmother. All the while, she cultivated her love of words by reading and by listening.
"I loved the poetry that was sung in [church]," she said. "It just seemed to me the most wonderful way of talking. And then I started reading, really reading, at about seven and a half, because a woman in my town took me to the library....And I read every book, even if I didn't understand it." At age 9, Angelou started writing poetry of her own.
Later, she went on to pursue new passions: singing and dancing. By her mid-20s, she was performing in San Francisco, where she earned a reputation as a talented singer and dancer. Under her new stage name, Maya Angelou, she went on to tour Europe with a production of the opera Porgy and Bess. In 1957, Angelou recorded her first album, Miss Calypso.
In addition to her various performing arts, Angelou became involved in the civil rights movement. She befriended prominent civil rights leaders, including Malcolm X, with whom she remained close until his assassination in 1965, and Martin Luther King, Jr. King asked Angelou to serve as a coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. (This organization worked to end segregation through nonviolent means.) On April 4, 1968, while Angelou was helping King organize the Poor People's March in Memphis, Tennessee, the civil rights leader was slain. It was Angelou's 40th birthday.
In 1969, Angelou became a bestselling author with the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The book is the first volume of her memoirs. In it, Angelou recalled her experiences growing up in the world of segregation. The memoir earned Angelou a nomination for a National Book Award. It has since sold millions of copies and has become a standard coming-of-age story that is taught throughout the country.
Angelou's words have captured the attention of many readers around the world. In 1993, "On the Pulse of the Morning," the poem she read at former President Bill Clinton's first inauguration, was broadcast internationally. It became a million-selling sensation. Still, Angelou prefers to be considered a teacher who writes, rather than a writer who teaches. Since 1981, she has been a professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University.
Now, at 82, Angelou continues to appeal to people through her teaching and writing. She is working on a new book. She also travels the country giving speeches. In addition, since 2002, she has been composing verse for Hallmark Cards. Angelou calls the venture part of her mission as "the people's poet."
"My intent is to see a person read 30 pages of the book of mine, or five poems....I like [a person] to just get in there," she says. "So in order to do that, I have to take these things—words. Everybody in the world uses them, from morning until night. Words. You have to take some nouns and pronouns and adjectives and adverbs, ball them together, and throw them against the wall and let them bounce. I've got to do it."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
The information not in the article is: the event that took place on Maya Angelou's 40th birthday.
The article states:
In 1993, "On the Pulse of the Morning," the poem she read at former President Bill Clinton's first inauguration, was broadcast internationally. It became a million-selling sensation.
Which would be the closest synonym for the word sensation?
A.Novelty
B.Phenomenon
C.Institution
D.Symphony
B. Phenomenon
All the while, she cultivated her love of words by reading and by listening.
Which would be the closest antonym for the word cultivate?
A.Neglect
B.Sustain
C.Isolate
D.Uphold