Maya Angelou is a phenomenal woman. She was born into a devastating decade, that suffered numerous tragedies. Not only had society shaped her as a woman, she has also shaped our society and influenced many lives. She is still living today, yet I believe her legend will never die. Furthermore I will share with you what motivated her and some of her gratifying experiences. How she was effected by society, and what she did about it. Also how the time period she was born into made her the extraordinary woman she is today. Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928, a year before the crash of 29 (the stock market crash). To get a sense of what exactly Maya was born into, I will explain what exactly this meant.