Self-discovery in Toni Bambora´s The Lesson and Liliana Heker´s The Stolen Party

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The diverse and powerful topic of socioeconomic can be explored to develop characters and the overall theme of a story. Two literary stories in particular, “The Lesson” by Toni Bambara and “The Stolen Party” by Liliana Heker, have used socioeconomic status to create a second theme of self-discovery. The main characters in each of these two stories are young girls who discover their adult selves by the end. A low socioeconomic status was a part of each character’s character development in “The Lesson” and “The Stolen Party”, which ultimately forced them down a path of self-discovery. Good Start
In both of these literary works, the low socioeconomic status of the main characters is made well known to the reader early on. This status is not a small detail to be known about the girls; rather it is an essential part of them. Knowing that these girls are not financially well-off is the most important development in their character and the overall message the stories send. In sociology, there is a term called master status, meaning, “a status that has exceptional importance for social identity, often shaping a person's entire life” (Marshall). In the case of these two stories, the low socioeconomic statuses act as master statuses for the girls; more important that their gender, or roles as daughters, or students.
“The Lesson” is told in the first-person point of view by a young African-American girl named Sylvia living in the ghettos of New York City. She tells a story about a day with her friends and Miss Moore. Her low economic status is made evident by the way she speaks; it is not “proper”. An example of her improper speech is, “ain't nobody gonna beat me at nuthin”. This speech continues throughout the story as she describes wha...

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...nfortunately, instead, she is handed money and is thanked for her help. This is the self-discovery for Rosaura, as she is shocked and her innocence is stolen. She is completely heart-broken to find out that her mother was right. In the beginning, her mother said, “You know what you are to them? The maid’s daughter, that’s what.” Rosaura discovers her economic status and how it actually matters to other people. She also discovers her adult self as she is rushed into this harsh realization.

Works Cited

Bambara, T. (1972). The lesson. Retrieved from http://cai.ucdavis.edu/gender/thelesson.html
Heker, L. (1994). The stolen party. Chicago: Coach House Press. Retrieved from http://www.schurzhs.org/ourpages/auto/2011/9/30/51370050/The Stolen Party.pdf
Marshall, Gordon ed., A Dictionary of Sociology (2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998), p. 399-400.

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