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Mother (Vivien Baxter)
Mr. Freeman is Vivien’s live-in boyfriend in St. Louis. When Marguerite and Bailey come to visit them for a few months, Mr. Freeman sexually assaults Marguerite. The abuse escalates until he rapes her. He warns Marguerite not to tell anyone, or he will kill Bailey. But Marguerite eventually does tell her brother, and Mr. Freeman is kicked out of the house. He is sentenced to a year in prison, but is killed (likely by Vivien’s brothers) before he can serve his sentence.
Mr. Freeman Quotes in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
The I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Freeman or refer to Mr. Freeman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 11 Quotes
He held me so softly I wished he wouldn’t ever let me go. I felt at home.
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In the midst of being sexually assaulted by Mr. Freeman, Maya finds peace in the sensation of being held by him. This is one of the most vivid and disturbing sequences in I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, and Maya’s utter confusion about what is happening to Mr. Freeman’s body and what he might be doing to her is captured most effectively in this moment. Mr. Freeman has just finished masturbating against Maya’s body, and knowing this the reader cannot help but wince at the intimacy of their embrace. But Maya, who has not yet connected the wetness in Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et
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Mr. Freeman Character Timeline in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
The timeline below shows where the character Mr. Freeman appears in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 10
Their mother has a live-in boyfriend named Mr. Freeman . He is fat and ugly and seems to understand he is lucky to have...
(full context)
Chapter 11
...has left, and feels a pressure in her back. She has a dim understanding that Mr. Freeman is pressing his penis into her, but doesn’t know if this is wrong or not....
(full context)
Soon she becomes very confused again, however. Mr. Freeman accuses her of wetting the bed. Then he tells her that if she ever tells...
(full context)
...Marguerite becomes lonesome, and longs to be held gently again. One evening she sits on Mr. Freeman ’s lap. He moves against her for a short while then abruptly stands up to...
(full context)
Chapter 12
One afternoon when Vivien and Bailey are out for the day, Mr. Freeman calls Marguerite over to him. She resists—she has found happiness in the library and doesn’t...
(full context)
...Mother returns and makes Marguerite soup, believing her to have come down with some virus. Mr. Freeman threatens Marguerite again as she is lying in bed. Later that night Marguerite hears her...
(full context)
Chapter 13
...Marguerite no one can kill him, and Marguerite trusts him enough to tell him that Mr. Freeman was the one that hurt her. Soon after, Mr. Freeman is arrested. Marguerite is called...
(full context)
Mr. Freeman is sentenced to one year in prison, but before his sentence even starts he is...
(full context)
Chapter 20
...love note, and asks Marguerite if she loves Tommy. The word love reminds Marguerite of Mr. Freeman and she says she does not love Tommy. Together she and Louise tear up the...
(full context)
Chapter 31
...humiliated if news got out that his lady had cut up his daughter. She recalls Mr. Freeman and feels guilt well up in her. She decides to run away.
(full context)
