The Lesson

     "The Lesson" is written from the perspective of Sylvia on a field trip with a group of kids from the neighborhood and Miss Moore. Miss Moore is described as having "proper speech and no makeup." She doesn't fit the stereotypical, racist view of a black woman at the time. The story was published in 1972 but is written in the past tense. America is still going through troubles with racial equality, so the time period is really important. Miss Moore brings the kids to FAO Schwartz on Fifth Avenue. The kids are very different from the "white folks" in the city, who wear fur coats while it's still hot. 

    While bringing the children to Fifth Avenue to prove a point about wage inequality, Sylvia gets really defensive. Her friend, Sugar, tries to participate but Sylvia steps on her foot, trying to stop her from talking about America not being much of a democracy due to some people having a lot and others, like the children and their families, don't. Sylvia might have became upset and ran away because it's hard to wrap your mind around a world where you are seen as less than due to skin color and status. At the beginning of the story, she said Sugar and her were the only ones that made sense at the time, so maybe Sugar sounding like how everyone else around her talks made her feel betrayed. She calls Sugar speaking out as treacherous. This reaction could also be because she is upset about how racism impacts her way of life without her permission. At the end she says that "ain't nobody gonna beat me at nuthin." She is pushing away the notion that she is considered less than by society, and she will not experience that inequality. Either way, it's a very interesting reaction from the protagonist.

Comments

  1. Geraldine U-BOctober 18, 2020 at 8:18 PM

    I totally agree with the part where you state that, "maybe Sugar sounding like how everyone else around her talks made her feel betrayed" because in the beginning, Sylvia saids that "they were the only two that made sense at that time". Getting placed in that position can only put her uncomfortable in a sense that she could not even defend herself and decide to run from the situation rather than just joining her in this point of view.

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