New Directions by Maya Angelou Flashcards
What is the setting?
1903, Arkansas
Who is the main character in the story?
Mrs. Annie Johnson
How many children does she have? Are the girls or boys and how old are they?
2 infant sons
What is the name of Annie’s husband?
William Johnson
Describe Annie (physical traits)
- Over 6-feet tall
- Bony
- African American
How did Annie make her plans?
Meticulously and in secret
Where did William go?
Enid, Oklahoma
What did William not tell Annie about?
He knew a minister in Enid with whom he could live with and had a friendly, unmarried daughter.
How did Annie and William part?
Amicably.
What did Annie keep and what did William take?
Annie kept the one-room house. William took most of the cash to carry himself to Oklahoma.
What jobs could African Americans work during Annie’s time?
- Cleaning
- Child care
- General household labor
Why did Annie not want to work the jobs available to her?
She did not want to leave her “precious babies” to someone else’s care.
What food did she make?
Meat pies
To whom did she sell her meat pies to?
Workers from the cotton gin and the lumber mill.
How much did she sell her meat pies for?
include the prices for both fresh and cool-down pies
A nickel each for hot, fresh meat pies.
3 cents each for cooled-down pies.
If she sold hot, fresh pies at the cotton gin on Monday, then she would…
Hint: Where would she appear Tuesday?
After the cotton gin on Monday, she would sell the remaining cool-down pies at the Lumber Mill for 3 cents each.
Then on Tuesday, she would appear at the Lumber Mill first to offer fresh, hot pies.
When she felt certain that workers had become dependent on her…
She build a stall between the two hives of the industry and let the men run to her for lunch.
What did Annie do one evening after she told herself she would cook?
Hint: How did she start her plan?
She carried stones in two, 5-gallon buckets and took them to the cotton gin (about 3 miles), discarding some rocks there. Then she walked to the lumber mill about 5 miles further down the dirt road to discard more rocks.
She placed the stones in…
Two 5-gallon buckets
How many miles was the cotton gin from Annie’s home?
3 miles.
How many miles was the Lumber Mill from Annie’s home?
8 miles. In the text, it stated “5 miles further along the dirt road [from the cotton gin].
What happened after she came back from carrying the stones to the cotton gin and lumber mill?
She worked into the early hours boiling chicken and ham.
Then she made the dough and filled the pastry (rolled-out) with meat.
What did she do the following morning after she had slept?
Hint: What did she carry to the cotton gin after preparing the previous evening?
She carried her meat pies, lard, an iron brazier (a type of pot), and coals for a fire.
When (what time of day) did she appear at the cotton gin to sell her meat pies?
Just before lunch, around noon
