Toni Cade Bambara The Lesson
“The Lesson”
A young, poor, black girl named Sylvia narrates Toni Cade Bambara’s “The Lesson”. Sylvia is growing up in Harlem during an unspecified time period known only as “back in the days when everyone was old and stupid or young and foolish and me and Sugar were the only ones just right.” (Pg. 2008, line 1) One day, Sylvia notices that someone new has moved onto the same block that she lives on. The lady is intriguing and “black as hell, cept for her feet, which were fish-white and spooky”. (Pg. 2009, line 9) Her name is Miss Moore. Sylvia and her cousin, Sugar, do not like her because she was always planning boring, educational events for them to do. The adults all agree that Miss Moore is strange, but they allow their children …show more content…
Bambara is interested in telling stories of children maturing and uses them to focus on social justice. The visit to F.A.O. Schwarz angers Sylvia. She doesn't know why and doesn’t know who to direct her anger towards: Miss Moore, Sugar, or white people. Despite Sylvia’s rebellious response to the trip, her chance to witness the vast disparity between rich and poor people seems to inspire her to try harder. While she is taking some time to think over the trip, she comes to the conclusion that injustice has helped her focus her anger. It is made very clear that the story takes place in the middle of the summer. Bambara’s reasoning for doing this might be because many middle and upper class people that live in New York tend to leave for the summer, thus leaving a vast majority of lower class individuals in the city. This highlights income disparities because most of the city’s population dwindles to those who cannot afford to leave. Miss Moore focuses on the vast gap between the wealthy people of New York and the poverty of their neighbors. Bambara points out that economic disparities exist even within the narrator’s own group of friends. Although none of the children can afford the toys, there is actually some diversity in their incomes. We are led to believe that Mercedes is well off financially. She goes into detail of how she has stationary and what her bedroom is like. She even adds that she hopes to come back to the toy store for her birthday. Flyboy is homeless. Sylvia and Sugar seem to represent the middle class. The children seemed to resent those with different income levels different from themselves, regarding of whether that person is of higher or lower class. Mercedes is berated when she talks about her stationary and is pushed out of the friend circle when she talks about returning to the store. The
A young, poor, black girl named Sylvia narrates Toni Cade Bambara’s “The Lesson”. Sylvia is growing up in Harlem during an unspecified time period known only as “back in the days when everyone was old and stupid or young and foolish and me and Sugar were the only ones just right.” (Pg. 2008, line 1) One day, Sylvia notices that someone new has moved onto the same block that she lives on. The lady is intriguing and “black as hell, cept for her feet, which were fish-white and spooky”. (Pg. 2009, line 9) Her name is Miss Moore. Sylvia and her cousin, Sugar, do not like her because she was always planning boring, educational events for them to do. The adults all agree that Miss Moore is strange, but they allow their children …show more content…
Bambara is interested in telling stories of children maturing and uses them to focus on social justice. The visit to F.A.O. Schwarz angers Sylvia. She doesn't know why and doesn’t know who to direct her anger towards: Miss Moore, Sugar, or white people. Despite Sylvia’s rebellious response to the trip, her chance to witness the vast disparity between rich and poor people seems to inspire her to try harder. While she is taking some time to think over the trip, she comes to the conclusion that injustice has helped her focus her anger. It is made very clear that the story takes place in the middle of the summer. Bambara’s reasoning for doing this might be because many middle and upper class people that live in New York tend to leave for the summer, thus leaving a vast majority of lower class individuals in the city. This highlights income disparities because most of the city’s population dwindles to those who cannot afford to leave. Miss Moore focuses on the vast gap between the wealthy people of New York and the poverty of their neighbors. Bambara points out that economic disparities exist even within the narrator’s own group of friends. Although none of the children can afford the toys, there is actually some diversity in their incomes. We are led to believe that Mercedes is well off financially. She goes into detail of how she has stationary and what her bedroom is like. She even adds that she hopes to come back to the toy store for her birthday. Flyboy is homeless. Sylvia and Sugar seem to represent the middle class. The children seemed to resent those with different income levels different from themselves, regarding of whether that person is of higher or lower class. Mercedes is berated when she talks about her stationary and is pushed out of the friend circle when she talks about returning to the store. The