Meet Maya Angelou Arthur of a new direction

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Meet Maya Angelou – Arthur of a new direction
In the short story “New Directions,” the author Maya Angelou tells this story purposely to teach the readers a life lesson and challenge them on taking a new path in life. She manages to achieve this by bringing the story of a woman by the name Mrs. Annie Johnson of Arkansas. She is poor but refuses to work as a domestic woman and starts her business which she ultimately succeeds. It is the desire of this woman to change her life towards success that the author wants to teach people. The theme that the author is trying to tell in the story is about change for something better. The author is trying to say that as a human being, in any situation, one needs to take a different direction that is better than the normal one. Maya wrote quoting Mrs. Johnson, “……since I wasn’t satisfied, I decided to step off the road and cut me a new path (Angelou, 37)” Of course, taking a new direction will give different results that are better like for Mrs. Johnson.
The author uses the plot explaining the events from the time Mrs. Johnson parts with her husband, starting her business of cooking and selling food roadside, and finally, she opens a store. The element of climax is depicted at the point when Mrs. Johnson decides to part with her husband. The situation marks the peak or the end of one part of life and the starting of the other life. At this point, the reader would want to know what followed next to the two people who were initially married.

Characterization is also expressed where we see Mrs. Johnson as a hardworking, daring, and an ambitious person who wants to try something new.
Work cited
Angelou, Maya. New Directions (1997)