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Maya Angelou, an iconic figure in American literature, is celebrated for her powerful voice, resilience, and profound explorations of human experience. Her poetry, deeply informed by her personal history, her identity as an African-American woman, and her advocacy for civil rights, offers fertile ground for existentialist inquiry. This study will examine how existentialist principles illuminate Maya Angelou’s poetic "strive for identity." By focusing on select poems, this study will demonstrate how Angelou’s work articulates the individual’s journey to forge a self in the face of adversity, embrace freedom and responsibility, and ultimately create meaning in an often-challenging world. Sartre believed that Existentialism asserts that humans are "condemned to be free," meaning they are entirely responsible for their choices and the values they create. For Angelou, this translates into the courage to define herself despite external limitations. Her poems illustrate how the speaker (or characters) make conscious choices to assert their individuality, challenging imposed identities and taking responsibility for their self-definition. Angelou’s poetry will be central to examining how she portrays individuals asserting their identity within specific cultural, social, and political landscapes. The analysis will look for expressions of freedom, choice, and responsibility in the characters' actions or the speaker's reflections, particularly concerning cultural identity and liberation.