Sometimes growing up we experience situations that can change our perspective on life. Especially, when these situations happen unexpectedly; we are in disbelief. In Toni Cade Bambara short story “The Lesson” written in first person; it delves into the struggle of a girl, Sylvia, who realizes the economic and social injustice surrounding her. However, with the help of Miss Moore Sylvia comes to grip with this issue, and opts to overcome it. In “The Lesson” Miss Moore wanted to impart on Sylvia and the other children is the value of a dollar, the importance of education, and to fathom the social and economic injustice that bounded them. To begin with, Miss Moore, Sylvia, and the other children are from the “slums”. However, what differentiate Miss Moore and everyone else in the neighborhood is that she has a college education, and speaks Standard English. As a result, Miss Moore plays the role as teacher to the neighborhood children. Most of the children from the neighborhood were poverty stricken and had a ghetto vernacular. Especially, Sylvia, who mouth is atrocious and has a strong animosity towards Miss Moore. For instance,“Miss Moore was her name. The only woman on the block with no first name. And she was black as hell, cept for her feet, which were fish-white and spooky.” Moreover, Miss Moore has high expectations of the children, so she takes them on a trip outside the hood to unveil the real world. Before going on the trip to the toy store Miss Moore tried to explain the value of money to the children. For example, “So we heading down the street and she’s boring us silly about what things cost and what our parents make and how much goes for rent and how money ain’t divided up right in this country.” At first, Sylvia is t... ... middle of paper ... ...as stubborn and as irritated Sylvia was with Miss Moore, she actually gained something from the trip. Sylvia learn the value of money; as an illustration, "We could go to Hascombs and get half a chocolate layer and then go to the Sunset and still have plenty money for potato chips and ice cream sodas." Also, Sylvia gradually comes to grips to the social and economic injustice around her. And she begins to realize that they are no different than the “White folks” on the other side of town. For example, “We start down the block and she gets ahead which is O.K by me I’m going to the West End and then over to the Drive to think this day through. She can run if she want to and even run faster. But ain’t nobody gonna beat me at nuthin.” With this being said from this point on Sylvia knows she can do or become anything she wants and nobody can prevent her from doing so.
This paragraph shows that Sylvia was trying to think about the meaning why Miss Moore took her students to there even though she knew that no one could buy anything there. Cartwright says, “Nothing could make Miss Moore happier than Sylvia’s commitment ‘to think the day through (Cartwright, 114).’” Miss Moore knew that Sylvia was trying to understand the real theory of this field trip. She did not say anything when she was asked what did she think about this field trip to Miss Moore because she did not understand exactly what the genuine purpose of this field trip at that point. Although Sylvia did not understand, Sugar seemed like she got the lesson of this trip, as she said “ this is not much of a democracy if you ask me. Equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough, don't it? (336)”. Miss Moore expected more answers from Sylvia, since she looked like she was thinking so hard. This is the reason why Miss Moore looked at Sylvia when she asked to her students a same question again, “Anybody else learn anything today? (336)”. She said “anybody”, but she was expecting the answer from Sylvia in this scene because she looked like she was thinking about it harder than the other students as she got a lot of question such as “What kinda work they do and how they live and how come we ain’t in on
I enjoyed reading Disciplined Hearts by Theresa O'Nell because i find that many people today do not know a lot about the Native American culture and what they have been through. Their cultures history is not talked about as much the African American or Hispanic's are. Most Americans know about the hardships that the African American and Hispanics had to overcome to assimilate to the level that they are today. I think O'Nell is trying to talk about the history of the Native American culture because, she believes that the reason that their culture is not well-known because of the fact that they have chosen to keep living like their ancestors and not assimilate to the American culture.
Bambara writes, “So right away I'm tired of this and say so. And would much rather snatch Sugar and go to the Sunset and terrorize the West Indian kids and take their hair ribbons and their money too. And Miss Moore files that remark away for next week's lesson on brotherhood, I can tell” (2). From this, we can see that Sylvia knew what she said was wrong and even why it was so. This also happens to be the passage that Cartwright uses to illustrate that the children require more than one lesson on a hot Harlem day; they deserve a thorough education. Cartwright explains “Rather than simply teaching a single lesson, the story is about the value of lessons themselves, the value of learning and thinking”
This negative attitude towards Miss Moore is what starts Sylvia’s character, which shows us how young and naïve she really is. At first glance we could perceive Miss Moore’s character as the protagonist and Sylvia’s character as the antagonist of this story. But really Miss Moore isn’t the center character Sylvia’s character is the center of this story, Miss Moore is just a character that starts conflict with Sylva’s character. Sylvia being the narrator
The essay, “Standing Up for the Power of Learning,” by Jay Mathews explained how one of many students was accused of academic dishonesty. During the regular school session of the year 2001, three fourths of 187 students at Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT) were found guilty of cheating. This was because they collaborated on an assignment in a computer science (CS) course with friends. By communicating with others about the project, the students violated the course honor code that prohibited the discussion among students for that particular class.
leader of the group of neighborhood kids gives Miss. Moore that challenge and not give
At the beginning of the story, the author gives us the feeling that a child is narrating this story. She also shows that the child, Sylvia, is at that age where she feels that adults are silly and she knows everything. “Back in the days when everyone was old and stupid or young and foolish and me and Sugar were the only ones just right, this lady moved on our block with nappy hair and proper speech and no makeup.” (Bambara 470) Sylvia also tells us about her environment while referencing Miss Moore. “And we kidna hated her too, hated the way we did the winos who cluttered up our parks and pissed on our handball walls and stank up our hallways and stairs so you couldn’t halfway play hide-and-seek without a damn gas mask. Miss Moore was her name. The only woman on the block without a first name.” (Bambara 470) This is our introduction to Miss Moore. She is an educated, well groomed person and the children resent her because she is different and their parents force them to spend time with her in the interest of education.
Dorothy Parker's "The Standard of Living" & Toni Cade Bambara's "The Lesson" This essay takes its inspiration from Dorothy Parker's "The Standard of Living" (pages 337- 341) and Toni Cade Bambara's "The Lesson" (pages 342-347). These stories have been written not only by different authors but with different styles as well. This essay basically addresses the issues of literary style between the two writers. DOROTHY PARKER'S "THE STANDARD OF LIVING" The young women are Annabel and Midgè crave for a lavish standard of life. They wish to be arrogant and leisure loving. They imagine lunching as per their want means they are wealthy and can buy what they want. They lunch on sugar, starches, oils, and butterfats that show the women are fat looking. They are shown to be food lovers eating sandwiches of spongy new white bread greased with butter and mayonnaise. They also take thick wedges of cake lying wet beneath ice cream and whipped cream and melted chocolate gritty with nuts. Dorothy is at her best describing the standard of living of the two young women starting with what they eat and they are shown to be eating lavishly. Dorothy then comes to the main point or the reality by telling that the lavish spending was just a dream. As an alternate the two girls are shown to be eating patties and other cheap food according to their own standards. Annabel and Midge were the best friends. Dorothy describes the starting of their friendship from the company that employed the two. The girls supported their families by working as stenographers. Dorothy describes the working conditions of the office of the two girls explaining where do they dine and take their lunch, how do they sit and what do they discuss. They passed Sundays in each other’s...
A great deal of symbolism can be found by simply examining the name Ms. Moore. Marital status does not define her - notice the Ms. Quite frankly, the reader is not even informed if she is married or even if she has children of her own. She is a very independent woman. Not only does the prefix of Ms. Moore represent that she is independent, but her last name also shows the she wants more for the children, because, according to her, they deserve more. Her purpose is to help the children realize that there is a world outside of Harlem that they can aspire to. Although F.A.O. Schwartz is just a small part of that world, the trip here with Ms. Moore shows the children a great deal about what the outside world is like and how anyone can have that piece of the pie. Even though the children could never afford the toys, Ms. Moore brings them to the store to show them they have just as much right to be there and just as much right to live the rich life as anyone else. Sylvia, the narrator, is upset by the inequality. She is jealous of the life she can't have and is angry that Ms. Moore would expose her to these facts. Although, Sylvia would never let her know this.
...siting F.A.O. Schwarz awakens in Sylvia an internal struggle she has never felt, and through criticizing Miss Moore, Sylvia distances herself from realizing her poverty. In her responses to the toys, their prices, and the unseen people who buy them, it is evident that Sylvia is confronting the truth of Miss Moore's lesson. As Sylvia begins to understand social inequality, the realization of her own disadvantage makes her angry. For Sylvia, achieving class consciousness is a painful enlightenment. For her to accept that she is underprivileged is shameful for her, and Sylvia would rather deny it than admit a wound to her pride: "ain't nobody gonna beat me at nuthin" (312).
One of Miss Moore's defining qualities is her intelligence. Her academic skills and self-presentation is noticeable through her college degree and use of “proper speech” (Bambara, 385). Miss Moore also makes her intelligence evident from the methods she uses to teach Sylvia and the other children. Unlike planting them in classrooms, she takes them out on trips to show them the real world. Despite all the insults she receives from th...
At the beginning, Sylvia is just a young black girl who comes from a slum, which she describes as a place full of winos. She lives in a tiny apartment clustered with all her relatives, and she has a huge resentment toward a woman she referred to as Miss Moore. Miss Moore has a college degree and volunteered to educate the children herself against their will, which caused Sylvia and other kids to hate
“I never found myself needing that piece of paper,” is a remark actor Johnny Depp made back in 2010 about his relationship with longtime partner Vanessa Paradis. Depp and Paradis have been in a relationship since 1998 and have two children together, Lily Rose and Jack. Another member of Hollywood’s elite, Latin singer Shakira, shares a similar view saying that marriage is like a contract, and that is unromantic. However, celebrities living like Shakira and Depp are also committing fornication and already view themselves as being married; the marriage is just not official. This draws comparisons to Ernest Gaines’ novel 'A Lesson Before Dying'. Two of the novel’s main characters, Grant and Vivian, have sex outside of marriage because they cannot be married since Vivian is still legally married to another man (Gaines 29). Even though of Vivian’s situation differs slightly from that of Depp’s, the act is still the same. These adults are conducting the act of sex outside of marriage; they are either ignoring what their religion teaches on the subject or do not care what religion has to say.
...merica. When Sylvia arrives at F.A.O Schwartz she is surprised by the high prices of the toys. After she sees the prices of the $35 clown and $1195 sailboat she ask Miss Moore, “Who are these people that spend that much for performing clowns and $1000 for toy sailboats? What kinda work they do and how they live and how come we ain’t in on it?”(319). Sylvia comes face to face with poverty and realizes that she is not privileged to buy those toys based on her low economic status. After Sylvia leaves the toy store she realizes Miss Moore’s lesson and has a better understanding of social inequality. The last sentence of the story states “But ain’t nobody gonna beat me at nuthin”(320). Sylvia realizes that she has a disadvantage in society and doesn’t want to accept the fact that she is in the lower-class. She’s in control of her life and can choose her place in society.
Toni Cade Bambara’s "The Lesson" revolves around a young black girl’s struggle to come to terms with the role that economic injustice, and the larger social injustice that it constitutes, plays in her life. Sylvia, the story’s protagonist, initially is reluctant to acknowledge that she is a victim of poverty. Far from being oblivious of the disparity between the rich and the poor, however, one might say that on some subconscious level, she is in fact aware of the inequity that permeates society and which contributes to her inexorably disadvantaged economic situation. That she relates poverty to shame—"But I feel funny, shame. But what I got to be shamed about? Got as much right to go in as anybody" (Bambara 604)—offers an indication as to why she is so hard-pressed to concede her substandard socioeconomic standing in the larger scheme of things. Sylvia is forced to finally address the true state of her place in society, however, when she observes firsthand the stark contrast between the rich and the poor at a fancy toy store in Manhattan. Initially furious about the blinding disparity, her emotionally charged reaction ultimately culminates in her acceptance of the real state of things, and this acceptance in turn cultivates her resolve to take action against the socioeconomic inequality that verily afflicts her, ensuring that "ain’t nobody gonna beat me at nuthin" (606). "The Lesson" posits that far from being insurmountable, economic and social injustice can be risen above, but it is necessary that we first acknowledge the role that it plays in our lives, and then determine to take action against it; indifference, and the inaction that it breeds, can only serve to perpetuate such injustices.