Anne Moody Coming Of Age

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Recommended: Childhood experiences that had a profound impact on anne moody

The experiences one faces at an early age affect how they live the rest of their life. Some have positive experiences, other have negative ones. Those who face hardships either do nothing and live a quiet life in desperation or others take action and try to make a change. Younger generations have much more motivation to make change compared to the older generations who have struggled for a while. Anne Moody is the main character in the book Coming of Age, which describes her own experiences during the Civil rights era. Her experiences at home, work and at school taught her about the significance of race in American social life as well as the differences in the lives of white and black people. These differences stem from consumption, leisure …show more content…

She received a quality education, something that was uncommon for African Americans during the civil rights era. She was the second runner up for valedictorian at her school, and she was even smarter than Wayne, the son of Anne’s employer Mrs. Burke, who was white and supposed to be superior in all aspects. During a day at work, Anne engaged in a conversation with Mrs. Burke over the integration of public high schools in the area. Anne was okay with the idea, she believed that there was no difference between her helping Wayne at home and sitting in a classroom with him. Mrs. Burke’s response was not uncommon, “she stormed out of the dining room, her face burning with anger.” Many whites reacted to this decision with anger as seen in the image of the desegregation of Central High School. The image shows fifteen-year-old Elizabeth Eckford, one of the Little Rock Nine, surrounded by an angry white crowd. Southern politicians went as far as trying to reverse the court order in Brown v. Board of Education. They believed the integration of public schools would destroy the public education system in America and they pledged to use all lawful means to reverse the …show more content…

After the first few days of work Mrs. Burke immediately brought up the murder of Emmett Till, an African American boy who was savagely beaten by a group of white men because he whistled at a white woman. Mrs. Burke said, “Negroes up North have no respect for people. They think that they can get away with anything.” She was sending Anne a message as if she better watch herself and not get out of hand because of what can happen to African Americans her age. This intimidation bred Anne’s hate for the men who murdered Emmett Till and all the other whites who murdered African Americans, but she also hated African Americans for not standing up and doing something about the murders. Mrs. Burke stereotypes Anne when she is looking for a tutor for her son Wayne. Anne was able to complete Wayne’s algebra problems in no time, which came as a surprise to Mrs. Burke. She assumed that Anne was incapable of completing her white son’s problems. Anne and her brother also face prejudice from Mrs. Burke when she loses her coin purse. Mrs. Burke asks Anne if she has seen it then goes outside to harass Junior, Anne’s brother. Anne watched Mrs. Burke as “she shook him down and turned his pockets inside out.” Mrs. Burke assumed that either Anne or Junior would have stolen her coin purse because of their skin color. After this incident, Anne decides to quit her job, “I am not coming back…we work Mrs. Burke so we won’t have

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